Minor Mischief
by RoseRed01
Summary: Jo is the perfect example of someone who has a horribly unlucky life.Then she finds out she's a demigod and her life changes even more.But is it a good thing?With her luck,probably not.No one knows her godly parent,even though she has been claimed.What will she learn,and what will she be willing to do for her mom to be accepted? Curses,quests,crazy gods.Yes,just some minor mischief
1. My Life of Mischief and Misfortune

**Ok, so this is an idea I had….probably not going to be a very long fanfic, but we'll see how it goes. Please tell me what you think!**

I lurked in the shadow. This had to work, it just had to. If it didn't, I didn't know what I would do. Probably go insane.

_Do you really think she'll notice?_ A particularly rebellious part of me said. _She'll probably only sigh and throw you out in the yard, like she always does. She doesn't care about you. She never will. And you know it._

I shook my head. No, she would notice. She would smile and laugh and tell me how much she appreciated me, and then tell me how sorry she was for neglecting me for all these years. Yes, this time would be different. It just had to be.

I crept out from behind the plant and eyed the man carefully. He was looking the other way. Perfect. I reached in my pocket and pulled out an object that was particularly close to my heart: a firecracker. It wasn't a big one, but it was perfect for the job. I looked up at the sky, then at the ground, then around me. I was in the garden, spying on the gardener. He was trimming the bushes with expert care, making them look like bunny rabbits and turtles. I thought it was silly. A bush was a bush. But I was not the one who decided what the garden should look like.

I lit a match and touched the small flame to the string on the firecracker. Quickly and nimbly I sprinted across the garden and dropped the explosive down the bush trimmer's pocket. By the time he looked up to see who that was, I was already in the safety of a tree. I snickered to myself. _This is gonna be good…._

Suddenly the man jumped up and let out an earthshaking bellow. "YYYEEEEEOOWWWEEEE!" he shouted as his back pocket exploded in a stream of color and sparks. He danced around ridiculously, trying to find something to stop the firecracker.

Finally the explosion stopped, and the gardener stood with a red face and a charred pocket. He pulled the busted firecracker from his pocket, looked at it, and seethed.

I held a hand over my mouth the entire time, trying very hard not to burst into hysterical laughter. This had to be the best prank yet. I finally gave up and guffawed until my stomach and cheeks were sore. But I stopped when I heard it.

"GOODRACE!" he shouted. I sank into the branches of the tree, willing myself to be gone. Apparently I sank a little too much because the next thing I knew I was falling out of the tree and hit the ground with a _THUD!_ I rubbed my head and looked up into the angry eyes of the gardener.

"Oh," I said. "Hi Madison. What's up?"

"My name is Mandy," the man said in a deep voice. He was very tall, had very broad shoulders, and had a very deep voice. Whenever I saw him he was very dirty and wore the same pair of beat up jeans, white shirt with suspenders. Oops, I'd gotten his name wrong. But you couldn't really blame me. He had just started working for my family that week, after our other gardener quit. And we went through lots of gardeners, and other workers besides. I couldn't remember the names all the time.

"Right, Mandy," I said. "So…uh, nice work on the bushes. I can really see the livelikeness of the puppy over there".

"Get up kid. Your mother said if you caused any trouble, I should report you to her".

I got up with some reluctance. I looked at Mandy, he looked at me harshly. I got looks like that a lot lately. _Here we go again,_ I thought to myself. But that was ok. It was all part of my plan.

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I walked with Mandy down the many long corridors and up the many flights of stairs. Finally we came to her office. I walked in slowly, my hands folded behind my back. Someone could have bound me in handcuffs and escorted me to juvie and it wouldn't have been as bad as this. But I took a confident breath. It was ok. It was part of my plan.

"Excuse me, Ms. Goodrace," Mandy spoke up.

The huge leather chair behind the desk swiveled around and revealed Ms. Goodrace, clad in her usual business attire, a phone stuck to her ear. She has tanned skin, blonde hair, and eyes that are emerald green. My spirits lift a little when I saw her, but shrunk back down when she saw me. She looked at Mandy, then back at me, then closed her eyes and sighed. "I'm going to have to call you back Charlie". She hung up and looked at Mandy with a familiar look. "What has she done now?"

"Firecracker," Mandy said, and placed the evidence on the desk. I lump of charred cloth that used to be his pocket. Ms. Goodrace looked at the cloth with her teeth biting her lip. She looked up at Mandy.

"I'm so terribly sorry sir," she said. "I'm sure she's sorry". She gave me a look.

"Um, yeah. Yeah, I'm sorry Madison".

Ms. Goodrace looked at me.

"Uh, Mandy!" I said, realizing my mistake. "Mandy! Sorry!"

Mandy grunted and left the room. I stood staring at the door, wondering if I'd ever see him again. Not likely.

I heard another sigh and I turned to face my doom.

"Jo, what have I told you?" she said, exasperated. "You can't pull pranks on the employees. It makes them quit".

"Are you sure _I'm_ the one that makes them quit?" I asked grumpily, crossing my arms.

"Jo, you can't keep this up," Ms. Goodrace said. "We're running out of gardeners. And cooks, maids, cleaners, and performers. Not to mention all your tutors—"

"I'm sorry but I can't help it," I said. "I just want to have a little fun with them is all".

"Playing mean pranks is not fun," she said with hard eyes. "What have we said?"

I sighed. "If it's not fun for everyone, it's not fun at all," I recited.

"That's right," Ms. Goodrace said. "And as your mother—"

"You are not my mother!" I said. "You never have and you never will be, and you will never replace Dad!" I broke down. I felt tears streak down my face.

"Jo," Ms. Goodrace said. "I know you're upset, but please listen. We can't undo the past. What happened to your father happened to him. Now I would appreciate it if you would stop acting like a spoiled brat and behave for once!"

Her words rang in my ears. This had gone terribly. Why did I ever think pulling a prank would bring attention other than this?

Ms. Goodrace's phone rang and she picked it up. She put a hand over it and said to me in a stern tone, "Go to your room. Your tutor will be here in an hour so make yourself look presentable".

I ran out of the room and down the many, many halls until I reached my room. I fell on my bed and cried. What had become of my life? Why did everything have to go so wrong?

When I finally could no longer cry, I got up from bed and went into my bathroom to take a shower.

My life was a series of unfortunate events, for lack of anything better to call it. My mother and father met at college, where they were both training to be lawyers. My dad had curly brown hair and the widest and brightest smile you have never seen. When I was little my dad would tell me the story about my mother hundreds of times. He would say, "Your mother had hair as black as night and eyes the color of silver and a face that told your right away that she could not be trusted. She was smart, pretty, funny. She always got into trouble, and I was always the one who bailed her out of trouble. You're a lot like her Jo. You have her eyes, and her hair, and her nose, and ears" he would say while tickling the places where I looked like my mother.

Unfortunately my mother left us when I was born. She left no note, no call, nothing. I was the only thing my father had left of her. He soon found out that it was hard to raise a kid, especial a handful like me, by himself, and he had to drop out of college his fourth year. He tried his best to raise me and support the apartment we lived in, but it was ok. He loved me more than he could ever say, and that was better than having all the riches in the world.

Things started looking up for the both of us when I was seven. Dad got a job at a court, and we could finally move into a bigger home. For a while, everything was perfect. But then things started to go wrong for me. My dad fell in love. And not with my mother. He met Holly Burna at a coffee shop, and he claimed it was love at first sight. They married a year later, and we moved into a huge mansion. We were no longer in debt, Dad had married a rich woman, and he was happy. But I wasn't. What he didn't know was that Holly Goodrace wasn't keen with kids, specifically me. She didn't like me, and I didn't like her. And what do I do to people I don't like? I prank them. Again, and again, and again. Holly didn't like it one bit, and insisted I be sent to a boarding school, but Dad refused every time. He still loved me more than anything, even Holly, I suspected. Every time I toilet papered her office, or stuck a frog in her blankets, Dad would just laugh and say, "She's just a kid" and move on.

I had never heard my father scold me. He always had an encouraging word to say, another laugh in his pocket. And when I messed up, he always said, "I know it's hard to be good sometimes. It's in your nature. Your mother was like that too. If you try your best, I'll always be proud of you. Promise me you'll always try your best". I promised and tried with every effort I had to be good.

But things got worse than ever before when I was ten. Ms. Goodrace got a letter from the police one day that my father had died in a car crash. I was heartbroken. I don't remember the funeral at all. It all went by too fast.

Now that dad was gone, Ms. Goodrace tried with every effort she had to put me in a boarding school. I had attended dozens, but I had gotten kicked out of each and every one of them in just a few weeks of my attendance there. I had to admit, I was an expert in the art of the prank.

Finally boarding schools started refusing me because of the reputation I had given myself. Ms. Goodrace had no other option than to hire a tutor. Then another when that one quit. Then another, and another. And now I was stuck here in the mansion, alone, with no one but the tutor of that week and the hundreds of people that worked to keep the house in top shape as well as cater to my every need. But they were certainly not my friends. I entertained myself by pulling pranks on them and trying to guess how long it would take them to quit, go insane, or both. The longest we had ever kept someone since Dad died was three weeks,and she had just barely survived my mischief.

I dried my hair and looked at myself in the mirror. I had my mother's silver eyes and mischievous and almost elfin face. My hair was as black as night, but a little wavy almost like my dad's. I pulled on me favorite hoodie and beat up jeans, completely ignoring what Holly had said about making myself look presentable. I walked out of the bathroom to find my new tutor standing in the doorway.

"Hello miss Goodrace," the woman said, smiling warmly. She was a roundish woman with short hair and my worst enemy in her hands; books. I crinkled my nose at the sight of them.

"Call me Jo," I said, sitting down on my bed.

"What an interesting name," the tutor said, trying to make conversation. "What does it stand for?"

I shrugged. "Just Jo".

"Oh, I see," she said, setting the horrid books on my bed. "Well, I am Mrs. Chesterfield".

"Nice to meet you," I said, not even looking at her.

"Look Jo," Mrs. Chesterfield said. "I know it's hard for a kid with ADHD and dyslexia to do well in school, but don't worry. I've taught many kids like you. Well have a lot of fun".

_If you think you've met people like me, then you've been mistaken,_ I thought.

**So there's chapter number one! Please tell me what you think and if I should continue it! **


	2. Mandy

**Chapter 2! I hope you'll notice that I drew a picture for this story. It took some research to find out enough information on Jo's godly mother for this fanfic, and even at that I had to make up some information to fill some major gaps in the mythology. But I hope you enjoy and please review!**

I stood in the doorway of my mansion, halfheartedly waving Mrs. Chesterfield away.

"Goodbye Jo!" she called over her shoulder. "I'll see you in two days!"

_Yea, and after that never again,_ I thought. I had a prank in mind that would drive her away without a moment's notice.

I shut the door, sighing and rubbing my head. I plopped down in the sitting room, my head swimming with all the facts and numbers I had absorbed, or at least tried to absorb. I asked a maid for a glass of water, and she hurried off to get it. I sat up on the couch, crossing my legs Native American style, an act that would have gotten me in trouble if Holly saw me.

The maid came by and handed me a glass filled with water. I thanked her and she left without a word. I stood up and drank half the glass. I walked over to the window, where I realized it was starting to rain. I leaned against the wall, looking out onto the big iron gates that separated the mansion from the rest of the world. I wondered what had changed since I last saw it, the world. When my father and I first moved in I was delighted and dazzled by everything I saw. Now, two years later, I found what I had left more intriguing. I had literately never left those iron gates since Dad's marriage to Holly.

Since Dad's death, I've stopped pranking Holly. But I still prank, all the time. When Dad died I moved my target from someone I disliked to any and everyone. I guess I just wanted to be noticed again. And pranking was the only way I was ever noticed.

I went to bed that night with a heavy heart, as I often did lately. I looked over at my desk, where a photograph of my Dad sat, smiling widely as if nothing were wrong. I could almost hear his voice, telling me that it was ok.

I had a dream that night. I stood in a subway, people bustling all around me. A loud _WOOSH! _Sound behind me voiced a subway car zooming by.

"Well well," said a voice. I turned and saw a woman cloaked in a robe the color of amber. I couldn't see her face, but I could tell she was smirking. "What do we have here? Another helpless soul in need of my aid?"

"Um, no mam," I said, taken aback by her language. "I was just…" just what? I was dreaming. I wasn't doing anything.

"Hm, quite," the woman said, examining a map. "Well, it is your dream. You brought yourself to me. So what do you want?"

"I—" what was she talking about?

The lady looked at me, and although I still couldn't see her face, I could've sworn I saw her eyes glitter with amusement. "Oh, I understand. You halfbloods and your crazy dreams. Half the time you don't even have the slightest idea of what's going on. Ha!"

"Um, I'm sorry mam," I said. "What did you just call me?"

"Look kid I've only got so much time, so I'm only going to say this once: if you're to be accepted, you have to prove yourself". The woman reached in her pocket and pulled out an apple. She bit into it.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, utterly confused now.

The woman held out the apple to me, turning it in her palm. "Life is like this apple here. It tastes sweet, but can only be earned the right to be eaten. Apples are precious things. They represent the youthful, carefree things in life".

"How does that make any sense?" I asked, exasperated. This woman was crazy!

The woman looked at me with a cold stare. "I'd watch that mind if I were you, godling. Remember what I said: you're gonna have to prove yourself". She placed the apple in my hand. I looked up at her, but she was gone.

I woke up, gasping and confused. I had crazy dreams, but this one took the cake. I shook my head and got up out of bed. Morning light streamed through my bedroom window. I opened the curtains and opened the floor length windows and stepped out onto the widow's walk. I stretched and yawned as I took in the morning air. It was early June, one of my least favorite months. I looked down at the huge garden, at all the gardeners and hedge trimmers and flower planters. Then I saw something that caught my eye. There, on the south side of the garden, was a hulking man with worn jeans, a dirty white shirt, and suspenders. It was Mandy. My eyebrows shot up in surprise. He was still here? Usually after a prank like the one I pulled yesterday would have sent him running away to find a less lethal gardening job. I ran into my room, pulled on some clothes, and sprinted down the stairs and out the door.

I crept around a tree, peering out from behind it at Mandy. He was digging a hole with a huge shovel, a small unplanted tree a few feet away. Mandy had his back to me. Suddenly he stopped digging and said, "Child, if you please, I feel uncomfortable when I am being watched".

I stepped into view. Mandy struck the shovel into the ground and looked at me. I couldn't read his expression. Mandy's face was covered in sweat, even though he had just started his shift an hour ago. He was bald, with an enormously bushy mustache. We eyed each other for a few moments, unsure of each other.

Finally I spoke, "Mandy, I'm sorry—"

"Don't be," Mandy said.

My eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"I know it must be hard for someone with your…history, in this world".

"I…uh, thank you sir," I said in shock. No one had acted that way to my misbehavior since…well, since Dad. I looked at the hole in the ground. "What are you planting?"

"This apple tree," he said, gesturing to it. "By the end of the summer, it should have apples to harvest".

I looked at the tree. I thought about my strange dream last night, and how the woman had been so partial to apples. How ironic.

Mandy went back to his work. I watched him curiously. After a few minutes, Mandy looked at me, sighed, and put the shovel down. "If you don't mind, could you leave me to do my work?"

"Why did you stay?" I asked, ignoring his question. "You do realize that most would have quit".

"I believe in giving the defendant a second chance," he said in a hinting tone. He went back to his work, but I didn't move an inch. When Mandy noticed I was still there, he sighed and said, "Don't you have some studies to do or something?"

"Today's Friday," I said. "And my homework gives me a headache".

"Well, don't you have any friends to socialize with?" he asked.

I shook my head. "I've never had a friend in my life". And this was true. Dad was the only person I had ever needed.

"Oh," Mandy said, his eyebrows lowering. He looked at me, then at the ground, then sighed and said, "All right, you can stay. But don't bother me".

I spent the whole afternoon watching Mandy work; planting the tree, trimming the bushes, planting new flowers and pulling weeds out of the beds of the old ones. I even made conversation with him, and it turned out that he was good company. He seemed rough around the edges but inside he was just a normal person.

Finally Dinner came, my least favorite meal of the day. It was the one meal where I was required to sit and eat with Holly. She called it "Bonding time" but really it was just to extract every little detail about my day, and if I had done anything wrong that she hadn't heard about.

"Jo, dear, eat your broccoli," Holly said, gesturing with her fork.

"I know," I said, stabbing the green vegetable with my fork.

"So how was your day Jo?" she asked like she asked every day. "What did you do? I've noticed that the house has been unusually quiet today".

"Nothing Holly," I said, looking down at my plate.

"Jo, sit up straight," Holly said sternly. I sat up straight. "Now, tell me what you did today. _Please_".

I sighed. "I watched the garden tenders today. You know that one from yesterday, Mandy, is still here".

"Yes, I was surprised when he said he wanted to stay," Holly said. "You didn't bother him again today did you?"

"No! Geez Holly, you act like I'm a bad kid or something".

"Well you're not exactly the nicest kid on the block," she said. "It wouldn't kill you to just be nice to people!"

"Ugh, that's it. May I be excused?"

"Not until you finish your food," Holly said sternly.

I shoved the last few bites of food into my mouth and ran upstairs to my room. I closed the door behind me and fell asleep angry.

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For the next three weeks I spent the days with Mandy, and we got to know each other well. Every day before and after tutoring I would find him in the garden and we would talk while he worked. He was the only person I didn't prank.

"Mandy?" I asked him on a particular day.

"Hm?" he asked. "What is it Jo?"

"How do the flowers know when it's going to rain?"

"What?" he said, looking up from his work of planting tulip bulbs.

"The flowers," I said. "They close up right before it rains so the weather doesn't destroy them. Why? None of the flowers elsewhere do it, only the ones in this garden, and only recently".

Mandy raised an eyebrow. "I think it may just be your imagination Jo. The flowers in this garden aren't any different than all the other flowers out there".

"And it's not just the flowers," I continued, "Recently the grass has seemed greener. And all of the plants as a whole, they seem livelier, don't you think?"

"I—I'm not sure what you mean," Mandy said. "There's nothing unusual about the garden".

"And come to think about it, I just started noticing after you showed up".

"Child! There is nothing different about this garden!"

I fell silent. Mandy looked at me. "Oh, I'm sorry Jo," he said.

"It's ok," I said.

"No, I shouldn't have yelled at you," he said.

Suddenly I heard someone calling my name.

"That's Holly," I said. "I have to go eat dinner. I'll see you tomorrow?"

Mandy nodded and we parted ways.

I was about halfway to the mansion when all of the sudden I heard a clicking sound. I looked around, but didn't see anything. I heard it again. I turned slowly, and there, before my very eyes, was a huge, hairy spider of unnatural size. It was bigger than a dinner plate, with brown hair and long fangs and beady red eyes. It was on the trunk of a tree, but I could have sworn it was looking me in the eye. It landed on the ground, hissing and stalking towards me. It wanted to kill me.

I couldn't move. I thought spiders like that only lived in places like the Amazon rainforest. It lunged at me, and I jumped as its fangs bit the air next to my ear. I heard the fizz of poison from the spider's fangs. I screamed.

Suddenly I heard a roar, then a sound like a goat bleating, and then Mandy stepped out carrying a huge tree branch.

At least, I thought it was Mandy. But what I was seeing couldn't have been real. Mandy stood before me, but from the waist down instead of pants, he had the furry hindquarters of a goat. I was frozen in complete shock. I couldn't move

The spider lunged at me again and Mandy shouted, "Move Jo!"

I felt a force like a freight train push me out of the way, then I was sprawled out on the ground. I heard Mandy shout in agony as the hiss of poison seemed to have made contact.

"Mandy!" I screamed, and managed to stand up. Mandy was clutching him arm. The skin around it was turning a sickly green color. Mandy looked at the spider and tried to lift his tree branch. Just before he brought the branch down on top of the creature, it turned to me and said in a voice that hissed in my head like the acidy venom, "You think you can make it? You will never have what it takes to be a daughter of impishness, mere foolhearted one". Then Mandy brought the branch down, and the spider burst into golden dust.

Mandy took off.

"Wait!" I called. "Mandy! Come back!" I chased after him, but he seemed to have just disappeared. I walked back to the place where the spider had attacked, but the only thing left was a small pile of golden dust and an eerie feeling in the air. Then I looked down and saw a small piece of paper. I picked it up. It read, "Mandy Sterling: searcher, satyr, guardian of the wild. Halfblood Hill, forest, four miles past Zues's Fist". I wondered what that meant. The last part seemed to be some sort of address, but it didn't make any sense.

Suddenly I heard a maid calling me in for dinner. I ran to the mansion, safely tucking the card in my pocket.

**Well, that's chapter 2! I didn't intend for it to be so long, but I guess that's a good thing.**

**PPPLLLEEEAAASSSEEE REVIEW!**


	3. Mrs Chesterfield's Demise

**Chapter 3! So this is where things start picking up, and Jo will be sent to camp. Hope you like it and review your opinion!**

The next day I didn't even bother to eat breakfast before going to find Mandy. I had so much to ask him; had what I saw yesterday even happened? Had I just been bit by the spider and hallucinating? If it was real, Mandy owed me a couple of explanations.

"Mandy?" I called. I stepped into the part of the garden where he usually was this early in the morning, but he wasn't there. _Maybe he finished already and moved onto the bushes,_ I thought. I ran to the bushes, but he wasn't there either.

_That's weird,_ I thought. I ran to the south part of the garden, thinking he might be tending to the small apple tree, but he wasn't there either.

I started panicking. What if the spider venom killed him? What if something had happened to him when I ran away? I ran back to the mansion. I had to find out what happened to my only friend.

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"HOLLY!" I screamed, bursting through the door. Holly jumped and screamed, scattering papers everywhere.

"Jo!" she said, bending over to pick up the papers. "Do not scare me like that".

"Where's Mandy?" I asked.

"Who?" Holly said, stacking the papers on the desk.

"Mandy," I said. "The gardener".

Holly looked at me for a moment, then it clicked. She said, "Oh, that one you're always pestering?"

"I don't pester him," I said, offended. "He's my friend".

Holly rolled her eyes. "He quit yesterday".

My jaw dropped. "He—what?"

"He came into my office and said that he quit," Holly said, scribbling something on a paper.

"But why?"I asked.

"Probably because you pranked him," Holly sniffed. "That's what usually drives people away".

"But I didn't prank him," I said.

Holly rolled her eyes again. "Please Jo, I know you did. You always do".

"But not with Mandy," I said. I couldn't believe this. Why would I ever prank Mandy?

"I don't see why you're so upset about this anyway," Holly said. "you never cared before if an employee quit".

"Holly, this is different. Yesterday I was in the garden and this huge spider thing attacked me, and Mandy saved me".

Holly looked at me and raised an eyebrow. "Huge spider thing?"

"Yeah. It was enormous. Like this," I showed her the size with my hands, stretching them in a huge circle.

Holly rolled her eyes for a third time. "Jo, spiders like that don't live in this part of the world".

"But I saw it with my own two eyes! And it spoke to me too!"

"Jo, honestly. You expect me to believe—"

"And then Mandy turned into this weird half goat thing, and the spider bit him and Mandy killed it, but he's still hurt—"

"JO! Enough of this!" Holly shouted. "Go. I've heard enough crazy stories of huge spiders and goat-men. No wonder Mandy quit. I want you to leave me".

I blinked. "But Holly—"

"GO!"

I left the room and traveled to my own, where I sat on my bed and stared at the wall. I felt a tear fall on my hand.

What had happened? My life had had a small glimmer of happiness for a moment. I thought maybe with Mandy, things might not be so bad. But he had run away too. I had lost the only friend I ever had.

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The next few days were awful for me. I found people harder to get along with. I yelled at the house keepers. My tutor found it harder to work with me. I never did my work, and I gave her an attitude all the time. I was sent to Holly twice almost every day. I had had enough with the world. Why did it have to make my life so unfortunate?

But the one day that I will never forget was five days after Mandy left.

I was sitting at my desk, reluctantly doing my homework, when I got the most mischievous idea in my entire life. I set my pre algebra aside and set to work on my tutor's demise.

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"Can you tell me what this picture represents Jo?" Mrs. Chesterfield asked, pointing to the picture in the textbook.

I looked at the picture. It showed a man with a bolt of lightning, and he was aiming it at the form of a falling woman from the heavens. I sighed in relief, because I had at least an idea of what it was.

"That's Zeus throwing the goddess Eris from Olympus," I said.

Mrs. Chesterfield looked at me expectantly. She wanted more explanation.

"Eris angered Zeus by, um," I racked my brain. "She…made Zues promise that the next descendent of him would someday be a great ruler. So, um, Hera was the one that made Eris influence Zeus to make the promise because Eris had powers to influence men. Zeus knew that his next son would be Hercules, so he promised. But Hera also knew this, so when the promise was made, Hera made Zeus's other unborn son, Eurystheus, to be born prematurely because she didn't like Hercules. But when Zeus found this out, he blamed Eris and she was thrown from Olympus". I waited for Mrs. Chesterfield to answer.

She bit her lip and said, "Good job Jo, but not quite. It wasn't Eris who did this, but you were very close. People often mistake the two goddesses for one another. We'll be talking about this goddess and how she impacted the Greeks, even though she was only a minor goddess". Suddenly a small alarm went off. "Oh, dear me, it's time for me to go. How time flies when you're talking about the Greeks. Goodbye Jo". She walked to the door and waved good bye.

This was it. Smiling, I pressed a small button on the bed, making sure Mrs. Chesterfield wouldn't notice, and a big fake spider dropped.

Mrs. Chesterfield screamed and ran. I chased after her. When she got to the stairs, I opened the door next to them and a stamped of frogs came hopping out, terrifying her even more. This time she saw that it was me who set the prank. I smiled.

"Jo! What are you doing?" she yelled while running from the frogs. When she got to the first floor, I pulled a string and a bucket of paint fell on top of her, covering her hair and dress. Mrs. Chesterfield shrieked but kept running, from me now. When she reached the front door and turned the door handle, the door mat stuck to her shoes. Mrs. Chesterfield looked at her feet is disbelief but kept going, jumping now.

I laughed the whole time. It was genius, I tell you. Genius.

Mrs. Chesterfield was almost to her car. I did one last thing, turned the sprinklers on, and in seconds my tutor was drenched.

Mrs. Chesterfield drove away screaming, "You're crazy! You're an evil demon child! You belong in the city asylum!"

I stared, smiling at my former tutor with satisfaction. That was the best prank of all time.

But my victory was short lived because suddenly my ear was grabbed and I was pulled upstairs by Holly, who was to furious to speak.

When we got to her office, she found her voice. "JO! WHAT IN THE NAME OF ALL THINGS ON EARTH WAS THAT?! IN ALL MY YEARS AS YOUR MOTHER, I HAVE NEVER SEEN SUCH, SUCH, MISBEHAVIOR! WOULD YOU CARE TO GIVE ME AN EXPLANATION YOUNG LADY?!"

"That was my greatest work," I said proudly. I didn't care that I knew Holly wouldn't feel the same way about it.

"Your greatest work?" Holly said. "You're _proud_ of this?"

"Do you have any idea how much effort it takes to pull a prank?" I asked. "I take pride in my hark work".

Holly let out a frustrated groan. "Jo, I've had enough of this. The next time you pull a prank on someone, I'll—"

"You'll what?" I asked. "You'll get another tutor? You'll ground me again? You'll yell at me until my ears bleed?"

Holly gritted her teeth. I'd never seen her this angry. In all my years of irking her, this moment won the record.

"No," she said. "I'm done with scolding you, or punishing you. It's not working".

"So what are you gonna do?" I taunted.

"I'm going to send you away," she said.

"You've tried that," I said, "Remember?"

"Not like this. I'm going to send you to the one place your father would completely forbid me from sending you".

I took a step back. "What is this school?"

"Not a school," Holly said, "A summer camp. But you could stay there for school too. They offer that. That's why you're father never let me even mention it to you. It might have meant to say good bye to you forever".

"How did he know about this camp?" I asked.

"Your mother suggested it to him," she said. "She said it was good for kids like you".

"But she never knew me," I said.

Holly shrugged. "Nevertheless, you're leaving tomorrow. Pack your things".

"But, wait, what?" Tomorrow? That was so soon. I didn't get to say good bye? Then I remembered that I had no one to say good bye to.

The maid the cleaned my room helped me pack. It was settled; I was leaving for a summer camp.

**So there's chapter 3! So some of you may be making connections as to which goddess is Jo's mom, but don't feel bad if you don't know. This goddess is not very well known…like, at all.**

**If I may ask, please review this story. I don't have any reviews right now, and I need to know what my audience thinks of my writing. Thanks! **


	4. The Dragon

**Chapter 4! I'm so excited to write so I'm just gonna shut up and do so.**

The car ride was an eternity. I hugged my bag, staring out the window. I hadn't been in the outside world for so long. Even with boarding schools, I don't consider it the outside world because it's just going from one prison to another. I wondered what had changed.

How could my mother, who had never known me, have a summer camp in mind for me? She didn't know me. And why had my dad refused? Millions of questions bubbled around in my brain, but I knew I could not answer them.

"Jo, put your seatbelt on," Holly scolded. I obeyed. "Drive faster," she told the limo driver. The driver obeyed. Everyone seemed to obey Holly. She always got her way.

The limo stopped at a red light. I looked out the window and saw something that bewildered and somewhat delighted me. I saw a monkey on the sidewalk. He was small, even for a monkey, with long tan fur and a bushy tail. He seemed to be looking at me, and cocked his head as if wondering what kind of strange creature I was.

The light turned green, and the driver floored it. We drove for hours, and even though we had left at five in the morning, it was midday when we reached our destination.

"Get out," Holly said.

"What?" I said. "But aren't you coming with me?"

"I'll send your application forms in the mail," Holly said.

And with that I got out of the limo, closed the door, and watched the long car drive away. There it went; my old life.

I turned and looked up at my new life. It was atop a huge hill, so I couldn't see it. I sighed and started hiking up. As I walked, I started to see the entrance. I could make out a huge pine tree right by a stone archway. It took a while with my dyslexia, but I thought it said, "Camp Half-blood". I didn't like that name. I'd been called that a few times at boarding schools, because only half of my family was rich. Of all the schools Holly could put me in, she had to choose the snobby rich-kid ones.

As I got closer I saw something glittering in the branches of the pine tree. _Oh, and they decorate the trees with gold_, I thought. Great, another snobby school.

I was almost at the top when I heard a low growl. I turned and saw something so bizarre the spider thing with Mandy seemed perfectly normal. I saw a fifty foot dragon with gold scales and razor sharp teeth and claws. I screamed and backed against the pine tree. Ok, I was definitely going crazy.

The dragon stalked toward me. I screamed again. What were you supposed to do if a dragon wanted to eat you? I tried to think, but it was useless. My mind was terrified beyond the point of reason.

The dragon was on top of me now. At the last second I ducked and ran under its belly. The dragon was fast though. He whipped around and roared in my face, blasting me with boiling, stinky breath.

Then things got weirder. Out of the corner of my eye I saw people, kids my age and a little older, rushing over to my aid. They held what looked like swords and shields and they were all dressed in armor so I couldn't see their faces.

The dragon was stalking toward me again now. Instinctively I grabbed a tree branch.

"Don't swing!" shouted someone. I looked and saw a kid step forward. He took off his helmet to reveal black hair and sea green eyes. "He won't hurt you," the boy said. "Just stay calm".

The dragon reared up on its hind legs, ready to strike. Then, the weirdest thing that day happened. I raised my hands instinctively, but the dragon never had his chance to attack. All of the sudden he tripped on a tree root and fell backward into a beehive. The bees swarmed out, stinging him.

I stared in utter bewilderment. I looked at my hands. Was that just a coincidence? Or had _I_ done that?

"How…?" said the boy with green eyes. "Who are you?"

I looked at the boy, but before I had a chance to answer him, I feinted.

**So there's chapter 4! I know it's so much shorter than the others, but I'll update soon bye-bye now!**


	5. Irking Boys and Crazy Couples

**Chapter 5! You know I think the hardest part of writing a fanfic is the author's notes. I never know what to write!**

My head hurt. My consciousness was barely there. I tried many times to wake up, but it took forever to open my eyes. When I finally did, I blinked groggily.

"Wha—wha?" I said. My head was pounding. I put a hand to my skull and felt a large knot buried under my hair. I squinted in the bright light. I was sitting in a chair on the back patio of a big, blue house. I tried to stand, but I was too weak.

Then my eyes focused, and right in front of my face I saw a boy. "Good morning Sleeping Beauty," he said with a mischievous smile that made me jealous. As my eyes focused more I saw that he had a very mischievous face, tanned skin, curious dark brown eyes, and crazy curly brown hair. My ADHD made it hard for me to resist the urge to run my fingers through it.

"So how's it feel to be among the living again?" he asked.

"Uh, what?" I asked. Who was this boy? And why was his smile so irking?

"Oh, right," he said. "You probably have no idea what's going on. Percy told me you just showed up".

"What are you talking about?" I asked. "Where am I?"

"You, chica, are at camp half-blood," he said, then held out his hand. "I'm Leo".

I cautiously shook his hand. "Jo".

"Interesting," he said. "So, Jo," he chuckled. "Hey, that rhymes. Anyways, I've been given the job to give you an explanation. So, do you have any questions?"

"Yeah," I said, "Can you call my step mom? I'll probably get kicked out of this place so you might as well have her on speed dial for when it happens".

Leo cocked an eyebrow. "I don't know. I'll have to ask the activities director. But that's not important right now. What I need to know is: what did you see the day you blacked out?"

I bit my lip. "Nothing much. I just saw a really big bear and panicked and passed out".

Leo laughed. "It's ok. I know what you're thinking you saw seems impossible, but you can tell me. Trust me: I won't think you're crazy".

With some reluctance I told him about the dragon, and how it had attacked me. I felt crazy, rambling about something I had obviously hallucinated, but Leo listened intently.

When I was finished, I said, "I don't know what actually happened. I probably ate something weird and my vision went berserk".

"Don't worry," Leo said. "Peleus just isn't used to visitors. We've been trying to train him not to attack if it smells like a half-blood".

I stared at him. "You mean to say, that really _was_ a dragon?"

"Bingo," Leo said.

I leaned away from him. "Ok, looks like I'm not the only one who's gone cookoo".

Leo looked at me with a reassuring gaze. "Don't worry. I know it seems hard to believe now, but you'll understand". Leo looked over my shoulder. "Oh, and here comes someone now who can explain better".

I turned and saw a boy with black windblown hair and eyes the color of the sea. It was the same boy I had seen with the dragon.

"You," I said in awe.

"Hi," he said in a friendly voice. He turned to Leo and said, "You didn't freak her out too much did you?"

"Me?" Leo said. "Since when does Valdez freak people out?"

The boy chuckled, then turned to me. "So how are you feeling?"

"Like my brain is noodle soup," I said. "I am so confused".

"That's good," he said. "My name's Percy Jackson".

"Jo Goodrace," I said.

"Well, Jo," Percy said, "you seem to be in good physical condition. Would you like a tour of the camp?"

=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=

We walked around the house and my jaw dropped. The camp was beautiful. The lake, the rolling hills, the strawberry fields, the woods. I had never seen such a marvelous sight.

"Welcome to Camp Half-Blood," Percy said. "Leo, would you get Annabeth?"

"Ok," Leo said, and ran off toward a cluster of buildings.

"So Jo," Percy said, then chuckled. "Hey, that rhymes. Anyways, are you ready for your tour?"

Percy showed me everything. I soaked in every sight and smell and sound like a sponge in the bathtub.

"And these are the cabins," Percy said, gesturing to a cluster of the strangest cabins I'd ever seen. One looked like an ancient Greek temple while another had a grass roof while still another had a boar and a bloody spear over the door.

"Which one will I be in?" I asked.

"That depends," Percy said.

"On what?"

"Percy!" a voice called. I turned and saw a blonde girl running towards us. She looked very athletic and had a tan from being out in the sun a lot. When she reached us she said, "Is this the new camper? The one that passed out yesterday?"

Percy smiled and said, "Annabeth, meet Jo. Jo, meet Annabeth. She'll explain how things work at camp".

Annabeth was giving me a gaze that made me uncomfortable. She looked like she was calculating the best way to take me down in a fight. I knew right away that this was not a person I wanted as my enemy.

"Nice to meet you Jo," she said, smiling. I shook her hand. "I know you're going to love it here".

_Yeah, before I get kicked out,_ I thought.

Annabeth cocked her head, as if reading my thoughts. "Follow me," she said, and Percy and I followed.

We sat down at the hearth in the middle of thecabins. A little girl sat there too, tending to the fire.

"Jo, I thought this was the best place to tell you," Annabeth said. "I want you to tell me about something. I want you to tell me about your parents".

"My parents?" I said. "My step-mom lives in a mansion and I never leave her sight. There's not much to tell".

Annabeth pursed her lips. "It's not your step-mom we need to know about. Tell me about your real parents".

I put my guard up. "Why?"

"I know it might be a little uncomfortable to talk about. But it's ok, we understand".

"How can you understand?" I asked. "You don't even know me".

"Please," Annabeth said softly.

I sighed. "My mother left when I was born and my father died when I was ten. Happy now?"

"Jo, I know this is going to sound crazy," Percy said, "You're mother did leave, but not for the reason you think".

"Oh, so now you're claiming you know my mother?" I fumed.

"Jo, don't get upset—"

"I knew it! This isn't any different than any of the other places Holly sent me! You guys just want to know about my life so you can figure out where I am on the food chain!"

"Jo, that's not it at all," Annabeth said. "We just want to help you. Calm down".

I did so somewhat.

"Now, have you ever heard of the Greek myths?"

"Yeah," I said.

"Well, they aren't myths," Percy said. "They're real, just like you and me".

I looked at the two. "I'm surrounded by nutcases," I said.

Annabeth slapped a hand to her forehead. Percy groaned.

"And you act like _I'm _the stupid one?" I said.

"Jo," Annabeth said, "I know this is going to be hard to believe. It was for all of us. But your mother was—is a goddess".

When she said that, I didn't know what to think. I didn't know whether to laugh or run away screaming. I would have done both, and I'm sure you would have too, but something held me back. No matter how much I told myself it wasn't true, that these two people were crazy, a tiny part of my mind still said it was a possibility. It would certainly explain a thing or two if all the Greek myths were true. But I shook my head defiantly. "You guys are crazy," I said, "I want to speak to whoever's in charge here. You guys need help".

Percy said, "Jo, please—"

"No," Annabeth said, holding up a hand. "Mr. D and Chiron should have been the ones to talk to her in the first place. Come on Jo". Annabeth and Percy stood up, and I followed them back to the big house.

**So there you have it! Hope ya liked it! I'll update soon!**


	6. Gods and Horses

**Chapter 6! Lucky you, you get two chapters in one day!**

When we reached the front porch, I saw two men that weren't there before playing cards at a table. One sat in a wheelchair and the other wore the most outrageous leopard print shirt I had ever seen.

The man in the wheelchair looked up from his cards, smiled, and said, "Ah, Percy, Annabeth. How nice to see you," then he saw me, "Well hello there. Are you our newest hero?"

"I guess," I said, sitting down. Percy and Annabeth took seats also.

"Chiron," Annabeth said, "we were giving Jo the orientation, but things aren't going exactly how we planned".

Chiron nodded as if he understood. He then turned to me. "So then, child. What have you learned?"

"Uh," I said. "…something about gods being real. Not much really".

"You don't seem very surprised by this claim," Chiron observed.

"Well, it _would_ explain a few things," I shook my head. "But that's impossible. My dad would have told me".

The man in the outrageous shirt snorted moodily.

Chiron leaned forward. "Jo, if you cannot believe this claim now, do you think you would have believed it if your father told you?"

"I—" I couldn't say that I would. It was a crazy accusation. "But it's crazy. There is no way. Gods don't exist".

The other man snorted again. I looked at him.

"Jo," Chiron said, "According to what I've heard, you've seen things that would appear to be monsters. Am I correct?"

Hesitantly I nodded.

"Then if what you have seen are monsters, and monsters are not supposed to exist either, how unlikely is it that gods exist too?"

He had me there. I had no answer to that. But I shook my head stubbornly. If there's one thing you'll learn about me, it's that I'm stubborn. "I can't believe I'm hearing this. You people are nuts! There is no such things as gods and monsters!"

The man with the weird shirt grunted angrily, dropped his cards, and looked at me with eyes that burned with purple flames. "That is _IT_! I am so sick and tired of having to hear the same thing _every single time_ one of you brats comes along. "Oh, there's no way gods exist" "My parents would have told me!" "Those are just myths!" Do you know what it's like to be called a myth?!"

"But—you mean-you're—" I couldn't seem to make a full sentence. I would have called him crazy too, but the look he was giving me unnerved me. His eyes were full of purple rage that seemed to be as old and powerful as time itself. I knew I didn't want to cross this guy.

"Jo, the gods are just as real as you or I," Chiron said, "And they get upset when someone disregards them".

I looked at him, my mind racing, a million things clicking at once. "Then, are you…?"

"The same Chiron that trained all the heroes in the myths?" he asked. "Yes, I am".

"But…why do I need to know this?"

"Jo," Annabeth said, "Do you remember learning about when the gods came to the mortal world?"

"Yes," I said. "They had children with mortals. But why—" then it all sank in. if the gods did that then, what would make them change their minds about it now? My father had said my mother left us, but never said why. What if…?

"So," I said, "That means…"

"Yes," Percy said, "You are a demigod".

**So there's chapter 6! So do you guys have any idea who Jo's mom is? Try to guess in your reviews, and if you guess right, you get bragging rights!**


	7. The Stoll Brothers

I walked with Percy and Annabeth to the sword arena. When we got there we heard a horn blow, and Annabeth rushed off to teach archery.

"Looks like it's just us," Percy said. "Ok, so what do you know about sword play?"

"What's sword play?" I asked.

Percy's expression deflated somewhat. "Ok, so we'll start from the _very_ beginning.

Percy handed me a sword. It weighed a ton. We tried another. It was way too long and awkward. We tried dozens more but either they were too heavy, or not heavy enough, or just didn't feel right. Percy finally gave up after a while and gave me one that I knew was too big.

"It's gonna be hard to get one that will suit you perfectly," Percy said. "It's just…well, you're so…"

"Small?" I asked. It was true. I barely reached five foot two even though I was fifteen, and I was very skinny and petite. Many people assumed at first glance that I would be an easy target. I smiled at the memory of making each and every one of them remember not to judge a book by its cover.

"Yeah," Percy said. "But I'm sure we'll figure something out. Maybe someone from the Hephaestus cabin can make you a custom fit one, or maybe you'll use a different weapon". Percy lifted his sword. "But anyways, the most important thing about sword play is stance. Without the right stance, you could get knocked down easily. Spread your feet out, like this".

I mimicked Percy's stance.

"Good. Now raise your sword".

I did so, but only for a few seconds before the sword became too heavy and clattered to the ground.

Percy scratched his head. "Ok, um, good job. Uh, I guess swords are not your thing".

I deflated.

"Don't feel bad," Percy said, putting a hand on my shoulder. "We all have things we're just not good at. Like me: I really stink at archery".

I looked at him.

"No, seriously, I do. I've only managed to hit the target, like, five times in my life".

I chuckled.

Suddenly Annabeth came running over. "Are you guys done?"

"Yeah, sort of," Percy said. "But, uh, I don't think we'll be able to train her until we get equipment that suits her".

Annabeth looked at me, realizing my size problem. "Ok, I'll tell cabin nine. In the mean time, Jo, would you like to help harvest the strawberries with Percy and I?"

I smiled. "Would I?"

=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=

"Percy, we won't be able to sell the strawberries if you keep eating them," Annabeth said, trying not to laugh.

"I can't help it," Percy said with a mouth full of berries. "They taste so good. And I'm starving".

Annabeth rolled her eyes.

"So how long have you guys been friends?" I asked.

"Since we were twelve," Percy and Annabeth said in unision.

I couldn't imagine having a best friend for that long. For me, having a friend for a week was a fantasy.

"So Jo," Annabeth said.

Percy laughed.

"What?" Annabeth asked.

"It rhymes," Percy chuckled.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Anyways, tell us about yourself".

"Me?" I asked. Someone wanted to know about me? "Um, well, there's really not much to tell. Why?"

"Because then we won't be strangers," Annabeth said, "also, if we know more about you, we might be able to predict who your mother is for when she claims you".

"Claims me?"

"Oh, it's nothing to worry about," Annabeth laughed at my expression. "It's just a sign sent by you godly parent to claim you as their own".

"Oh," I said. "Well, I'm not exactly what you'd call a 'good kid'".

Percy nodded. "Most demigods are like that. It's the ADHD".

My eyes widened. "You have ADHD too?"

"All demigods do," Annabeth said. "That's your battle reflexes. We all also have dyslexia, because our natural language for reading and writing is Ancient Greek, not English".

"Oh. Well," I told them my story, starting after my father died. I was just too painful to talk about it. When I was finished, Percy burst out laughing.

"You must have drove everyone crazy with those pranks," he said.

"Yeah," I said, swelling with pride, "I did".

"I admire you're cleverness," Annabeth said. "I wish I had thought of that when my father got remarried.

"Yeah," I said, "But it got me into a lot of trouble. I went through so many boarding schools and tutors over the last five years".

"How many schools have you gotten kicked out of?" Annabeth asked.

I thought about that. How many schools_ had_ I gotten kicked out of. Let's see…

"I'd have to say…sixty two in my whole life. And fifty one tutors".

Percy's jaw dropped. Annabeth's eyes got as wide as dinner plates.

"How is that possible?"

"I don't know," I said. "I had an average of five schools per year since kindergarden even though I didn't start attending boarding schools until I was ten, plus a few that I distinctly remember. Then the tutors; Holly had only started hiring tutors a year ago. They only lasted about a week each; fifty two weeks in a year, minus one because I had one tutor that lasted two weeks. So…yes sixty two schools and fifty one tutors".

"Percy, I didn't think anyone could beat your record," Annabeth said.

"Me neither," Percy replied in awe.

Suddenly I heard a horn blow in the distance.

"That's the signal for dinner" Percy said. He looked at me. "You'll have to sit at the Hermes table until you're claimed. Hopefully that will be tonight".

=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=.=

When I got to the dining pavilion, I let out a gasp. I had no idea there were this many campers. Almost all the tables were crowded, and I noticed the kids at each table shared similar features. The Athena cabin all had grey eyes and that analyzing stare, the Aphrodite cabin all looked like supermodels even though each sibling looked different from one another, the Apollo cabin had the same nimble features that would be perfect for the art of the bow. I looked around and was able to spot Hermes, cabin twelve. That table was the fullest, so much that there were actually two tables.

Timidly I walked up to the table. I stood there awkwardly, waiting to be noticed, and finally I was. A boy with a mop of brown hair and a mischievous face that made me a little edgy walked round the table. He looked me up and down.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"I'm supposed to sit at table twelve until I'm claimed," I said.

"Oh," he said, "Well, you're welcome to sit with me and my brother". He gestured to a small empty space by another boy of exact features, though he was slightly shorter and had a rounder face.

When I sat down with my food, the boy who'd greeted me said, "My name's Connor, and this is Travis".

"Jo," I said.

"So who do you think your parent is?" asked Travis.

"I don't know," I said, "I thought it might be Hermes, being the god of thieves and all, but my dad's mortal".

"Hermes huh?" Connor said. "for thievery? Why?"

"Well, thievery and…mischief," I said. I smiled with pride. "I consider myself an expert in the art of mischief".

The Stoll brothers got very serious expressions. "Expert huh?" Connor said. He leaned in close and said with a smile. "Trust me, my brother and I are the experts in that".

I gritted my teeth. No one insulted my pranking. "And why do you think that?"

Connor and Travis laughed. "You're a girl. There's nothing else that needs to be said".

I crinkled my nose. "I dare you to laugh, I just dare you. But _no one_ insults my pranking".

The brothers cocked their heads. "Oh, really?" Travis said.

"Trust us," Connor said, "Leave the pranks to Hermes, princess".

I didn't speak to them for that meal. Oh, I'd show them. Tonight, I was going to prepare for war.

**So there you have it! The inevitable battle of the pranks. Jo will probably be claimed next chapter, just to let you know so you can be at ease. I wrote this chapter last night. I'm sick today though, so I might write today, I might not.**

**Please review!**


	8. I Get Claimed But No One Cares

**Ok, so this is the chapter where Jo finally gets claimed. Thank you my readers for being so patient.**

**I had 1 guess on Jo's mom. ****Ophelia Lokisdottir****: you were close, but Jo's mom is even less known. Good guess though!:)**

I lay awake in my sleeping bag, in a small corner of the Hermes cabin. I hadn't slept all night. I was too busy planning my next scheme. I looked toward the window. Morning light was just starting to peak its way over the horizon, bathing the sky in bright fresh colors.

I turned over and saw the Stoll brothers sleeping in their bunks. They were of the few that actually got to sleep in a bed. I smiled mischievously. This was gonna be good.

I slipped out of my sleeping bag and tip-toed to the Stoll brothers' bunk. It took the utmost carefulness because the floor was covered in sleeping campers. Every time one turned or sniffled in their sleep, I froze in terror. When I reached the destined bunk, I stared down at the Stolls. They looked so peaceful, asleep. They seemed to be in utter bliss, perhaps having a wonderful dream.

I reached in my pocket and pulled out two small fire crackers. With quick and nimble fingers, I lit each one and tucked it carefully in the beds. I then ducked out of sight and waited a few seconds. I counted down _three…two…one…_

Suddenly the fire crackers exploded in an array of color and sparks. Connor and Travis woke up screaming.

"AAAAHHHHH!" they shouted, and jumped out of their beds. Their clothes were charred and they ran around the cabin trying to extinguish the exploding items in the pockets of their pajamas.

The other campers in the cabin started waking up, yawning and forcing their eyes open. They apparently were used to having pranks in the cabin because conversation erupted almost instantly.

"What is it now?"

"Where is it?"

"What did Connor and Travis do now?"

Connor and Travis, panicked, flung open the door to the cabin. Immediately they were doused in a mixture I created myself—sea weed, shaving cream, and blue food coloring. The two boys stumbled outside-blinded partially from the slop and partially from the shock—which was a bad idea because the rest of the camp had started to wake up to get ready for breakfast. Campers from every cabin were in and out of their cabins, cleaning up and preparing for the day. What they did not expect was two boys screaming and running out of their cabin covered in blue slime and smoke from exploding fire crackers.

I casually strolled out and leaned against the door post, watching the Stoll brothers make fools out of themselves. When the fire crackers stopped exploding, they stood in the middle of the cabin area, looks of confusion and embarrassment spread wide across their faces. They looked, petrified, around at the crowd of half-bloods that had gathered to watch this strange event.

Quiet chatter broke out among the entire cabin. Campers from cabin twelve started filing out and stared at the scene in awe.

"Connor, what happened?" someone asked. It was a girl with blonde hair and big eyes. I noticed that the plants around her seemed to lean in toward her, as if drawn by her presence.

"Someone has…" Connor said, but never finished his sentence. It was as if it were inconceivable.

A big girl whom I assumed was from the Ares cabin spoke up, "It looks like someone has _pranked you_! The great Stoll brothers have been pranked!"

"What?! No, that's impossible!" Travis said, almost as if trying to convince himself of that.

"Oh, is it?" I asked, taking this as an opportunity for an entrance. I walked out into the open, fully aware that every head was turned on me.

The Stoll brothers' eyes narrowed. "You," they said in unison.

"Yes, me," I said. "So, how do you like my stroke of genius?"

"But, how?" Travis asked. They both seemed at a loss for words.

I leaned in close and smiled my trademark mischievous smile. "I told you to never insult my pranking".

I meant to be intimidating, but at that moment the whole camp gasped. I looked around. They all held slightly awed and confused looks on their faces. Then I realized that they weren't looking at me, but at the top of my head. I looked up and what I saw stole a gasp from my own throat. Enveloped in golden light was the image of an apple as red as a ruby. I watched as the image faded and disappeared.

Annabeth pushed her way forward, and said, "Well Jo, it looks like you've been claimed".

"But who is it?" someone called. "Who's symbol is an apple?"

Annabeth looked frantic. She glanced at the ground. "I don't know".

This apparently was another shock for the camp. A baffled silence rang through the air.

"There are few who do," said Chiron, who galloped over in horse form. "It is the symbol for Ate, goddess of mischief". Chiron knelt, and Annabeth followed. A few other campers knelt too, but most stood in puzzlement. I stood there uncomfortably. Who was Ate? She wasn't one of the Olympic goddesses.

**So there's the next chapter! Just so you know, Ate is pronounced Ay—tee. **


	9. The Library of Cabin 6

**Chapter 9! I'm really excited about this story, I love writing it! And that's what really what matters most when writing, that you love it, not just that other people like it.**

**So don't be discouraged if you don't know who Ate is, neither did I at first. I'll give as much info on her in the chapters as I can find.**

**AND ACTION!**

The whole day was a blur. I was so caught up in my thoughts that I hardly paid attention to anything or anyone. The only thing I really noticed was that for the whole day, people were staring at me, curious and puzzled looks on their faces. I would have said something if I wasn't so consumed in my own thoughts.

"Careful chica! You'll burn yourself!" said a voice.

"Huh? Oh, sorry Leo," I said. I was at arts and crafts with the Hephaestus cabin. I was working with fiery hot metal, and I was getting dangerously close to the skin.

"You need to hold the hammer angled away from you," Leo said, showing me.

"Oh, ok," I mimicked the method and slammed the hammer down. Unfortunately my thumb was in the way. I howled in pain and clutched my poor finger.

"Well, at least you got the angle right. Just try to keep vulnerable digits out of the way next time," Leo said, handing me a bag of ice. I cradled my thumb in the freezing ice, sighing as the frozen water soothed the sore. Leo watched me, then said, "You seem distracted today".

"Hm?" I looked up. Leo was giving me a curious and slightly concerned look.

"You seem distracted today," he repeated. "Like there's something on your mind".

"Oh," I said. I sighed and looked down at my lap. "I guess it's just my claiming, that's all".

"Ah," Leo said. "I see. I guess it must be hard not to know who your mom is, even if you find out who she is".

I looked at him and raised a confused eyebrow.

Leo bit his lip. "I mean…you know who she is, but you don't know who she _is_. Like, about her".

"Yeah," I said. "I've never heard of Ate before. She's not an Olympic goddess, is she?"

"She must be a minor goddess," Leo said. "There are thousands of minor gods".

"I just wish I knew more about her," I said.

Leo was silent for a moment. Then his face lit up. "I think I know where we can find out". He grabbed my hand and dragged me to the cabins.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"You'll see Jo," he said.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

"What cabin is this again?" I asked. Leo and I stood at the door of a cabin that was simple; gold and blue with an owl carved over the door.

"Athena," Leo said. "Annabeth's cabin".

We walked inside and I gasped. The inside was covered in intellectual things. The beds were pushed against the walls, as if sleeping were the least important thing to do. Tables covered with papers and blueprints were everywhere. The walls were lined with bookshelves and cubby holes, containing not only books but also ancient scrolls.

But Leo walked past all of it. He walked up to the bookshelf on the far wall and started feeling around, not taking the books off but instead poking and tapping them. "I know it's here somewhere…" suddenly his hand fell on a particular book and it slid out when his fingers touched it. The book shelf slid aside, and Leo turned back to me with a smile that made me grit my teeth. "Come on," he said.

I followed him through the entrance and what I saw was even more fantastic than the cabin. I didn't see how it was possible. This was definitely bigger than what the cabin looked like on the outside.

I stood at the entrance of a multi story colossal library. There were at least a dozen floors above and below me. Campers were few and far between, but the few there were were either studying for the next school year, or researching for Ancient Greek or monster class, or the Athena kids were just hanging out, laughing and drinking coffee. Papers were here and there on tables, including several copies of, the _Olympic Press_, a popular newspaper for the magical world.

And the books, oh so many books. There must have been enough to beat the world records a hundred times. It was pretty much a dyslexic nightmare.

"Oh, my, gods…" I said, those the only words I could speak. I wasn't exactly partial to books, but even I had to admire it's awe-inspiring wonder.

"This is the _domatio tis gnosis_," Leo said.

"The room of knowledge," I translated.

"It's the result of a perfect collaboration of Athena and Hephaestus. The two cabins worked together over winter break".

"You built this?" I asked in awe.

"Uh, along with the help of my cabin and Annabeth's cabin," Leo said, blushing. "It's the perfect place to go if you don't know something".

"Leo, that's brilliant!" I said. Leo smiled and we walked toward the ancient Greek section of the History level.

I was grateful for the source for research, but after an hour I was ready to throw every book in that place in a bonfire.

"Gops…the abble, no apple…Ate—AAAHHH!" I screamed, and threw the book. I jumped up and paced around the table, the words swirling around my head like alphabet soup. My dyslexia had stretched to its limits and my ADHD wasn't doing much better. "How are we ever going to find anything in this place!"

"There's got to be something on your mother," Leo said. "We just have to be patient I guess".

"Patience is not something I have," I said.

"You think?" Leo said. "You look like a crazed fish out of water right now". But Leo didn't look much better. He looked like he could scream too. He was tapping his fingers at a rapid pace, trying to control his ADHD.

I sighed and sat down, laying my head on the table. "There must be an easier way of finding what we're looking for".

Leo scratched his head. "Like what?"

"I don't know," I said. I stood up and walked over to a random shelf, aimlessly looking over the spines. There were so many books. How could I find just the right one? I pulled a book out and randomly flipped through the pages. The book was one of hundreds of a series of Encyclopedias on demigod history. Suddenly my fingers fell upon a familiar name.

"Percy's in this book?" I asked. I read over the summary, which described Percy as a demigod son of Poseidon, chosen of the great prophecy, leader of the demigod army against Kronos in the second Titan war, ect. There was several pages on him, and appearently even more information that was noted in the Encyclopedia as the "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" novel series.

"Oh, yeah," Leo said. "Percy was part of this huge war some years back, before even I was at camp".

"The second Titan war?" I asked. "There was more than one?"

"History repeats itself," Leo explained. "According to older campers that were there for it, the Titan's tried to make a comeback".

"Wow," I said. I flipped further into the book and found yet another familiar name. "You're in this book too Leo?"

"Yeah," Leo said, obviously a little embarrassed about it. "I was part of another war".

"The giant war," I read. "And the war between the Romans and Greeks. I didn't know the Romans were still around".

"Rome was a huge civilization," Leo said. "The original might not still be around, but its legion lives on".

"It says here there was a prophecy tied to it," I said. "The prophecy of the seven. _Seven half-bloods shall answer the call…_"

"_To storm or fire the world must fall_," Leo said from memory.

"_An oath to keep with a final breath—"_

_ "And foes bare arms to the doors of death"._

"What did it mean?" I asked.

Leo looked at the book solemnly, as if remembering something he wished to forget. "There were seven demigods in the quest to defeat the giants. Me, Percy, Annabeth, and four others you don't know".

"Piper Mclean, Jason Grace, Frank Zhang, and Hazel Levesque," I read. "Who are they?"

"They don't go to this camp," Leo said. He winched at that last name I said. "Frank, Jason, and Hazel are children of the Roman gods. Piper went to live with Jason and the rest of them at Camp Jupiter, the Roman camp in California. I haven' seen them in person since they left".

I looked at Leo. He was looking at the floor, his face contorted in an expression I knew well: longing. Longing to be with the people you cared again. Longing for happiness. Longing for…something you couldn't quite put you tongue on, but it still hurt your heart like a knife.

After a few moments of silence I said, "How long ago was this war of the giants?"

"It was last summer," Leo said.

I furrowed my eyebrows. "If it was that recent, how come I didn't hear anything about it in the news?"

"The mist," Leo said simply.

"The what?"

"The mist. It's like this magic veil that hides things from what they really are for mortals. You probably heard things on the news like a massive blizzard in California, strange glacier breakage in Alaska, and huge freak storms in Rome and Greece".

I thought about it, then nodded my head. "Yeah, I think I remember hearing something like that. that was you?"

"Me and the rest of the seven," Leo mused. "Yeah, we got into a lot of trouble then".

My attention remembered that we were supposed to be looking for research on Ate. Leo and I moved further into the library, scrutinizing for anything that would be helpful. After another hour I had to stop.

"I hate dyslexia," I said, rubbing my eyes.

"I know what you mean," Leo said, doing the same.

"I wish there was some way to read without it turning out like scrabble".

Leo thought for a while, then his eyes widened and he smacked a hand to his head. "Oh, I am so stupid".

"What?" I asked.

Leo reached in his pocket and pulled out a small plastic box. He unscrewed the lid, revealing two tiny translucent disks. "These are some eye contacts I designed myself. They're made to help suppress the affects of dyslexia".

My eyes widened. "That's amazing".

"I brought them with me so we could test them," he said. "But I sort of forgot until now when you mentioned something. Here, take them out carefully".

Using a pair of provided tweezers, I carefully plucked the contacts from the little box. With cautious fingers I gingerly lowered the tweezers down and placed the tiny disk on my eye. Then I proceeded to put the other one on my other eye.

I opened my eyes. Through the contacts I saw the world completely differently. Every word I saw I recognized instantly. It was like the fog had lifted, and I saw everything more clearly.

Things moved much more smoothly from there. I read twice as fast, and went through all the books in the history section in what seemed like no time at all.

"Leo, I think I have to say this is the best invention you've created," I said, skimming over the last encyclopedia.

"You haven't seen all of my inventions," Leo said, though I could tell he was soaking up the praise. He looked at the walls of books and said. "I don't understand. I thought we had information on every god, hero, and monster from here to the underworld in this library".

"Hmm," I said. I paced the floor, as if walking would reveal the answers I was looking for. All of the sudden I heard a creek. I stopped, then shifted my weight. Another creak. I looked down and saw nothing but an ordinary creaky floorboard. I would have just moved on if not for a thought.

"Weird…" I said.

"What?" Leo asked.

"This floorboard is loose. See how it creaks? This library was built recently. It shouldn't creak".

Leo looked at the floor quizzically.

I bent over and pressed on the board. Then I slid my fingers under it and lifted up. the board lifted and I moved it aside. Underneath it was a hidden book. It was obviously very old. It was leather bound, with yellowing pages and the writing on the front was done by hand. I squinted at the writing, but couldn't read it.

"I can't read what it says," I said, handing the book to Leo.

"Really? I can".

"What?"

"It says, 'The Goddess of High Jinks, Impish Behavior, and all Things Your Parents Told you Never to do". Leo looked up. "I think this is what we've been looking for. But why was it hidden in the floor?"

"I don't know," I said. "How come you can read it and I can't?"

Leo looked at the cover. "Oh, it's in Ancient Greek. With those contacts, your demigod brain is reversed, so you can only read English. Oh man, that could be dangerous".

"How?"

"If it alters the way you think about language that much, it may alter the ability to see through the mist, which is treacherous for demigods. You should probably give them back to me now".

I did so and watched Leo rush off to try and fix them. I looked at the cover of the book in my hands, which had a very clear title now, and opened to the first page.

The book read in Ancient Greek,

Young demigod, if you have found this book, you may very well be in grave danger. By uncovering the location of this book, you have upset and stirred many evil spirits. But don't put it back. What you have already done cannot be erased. Now you have two options: you could turn the page and continue reading, or you can lock it away, forget about it, and hope that whatever is out there will never find you. If you chose to read on, it will only increase the danger you're putting yourself in, thus it is safer to lock this in a chest, throw it in a place you will never have to look at it again, and try you very best to forget it. But whatever you do, do not get rid of it. That is the worst thing you can do. If this book were to fall into the wrong hands, the mortal world as we know it will be destroyed. Take care, and I hope you take this advice to heart and use the knowledge you discover wisely.

-The Sneeker

"The Sneeker," I said to myself. Who could that be? Whoever they were, they obviously believed this book was dangerous. Should I read it? My fingers inched toward the page, then drew back. What would happen if I did? According to the letter, I would put me in danger. But it looked so tempting. This was what I had been searching for my whole life. Answers. Every kid who's been left by a parent wants to know everything about them. I always wanted to sit and have a conversation with my mom, to get to know her. And this might be the closest I'll ever get to that. I took a deep breath and turned the page.

Suddenly I heard the sound of a ram's horn being blown. Time for dinner. I tucked the book in my arms and headed out of the library.

**There's chapter 9! Nice and long for ya! So what do you think Jo will find out? Something really shocking and exciting!**

**Please review!**


	10. Ate's Cabin

**Chapter 10! This will reveal some secrets and give some explanations.**

That night I lay under the covers in my sleeping bag, a flashlight and the book in my possession. I had waited until everyone in the Hermes cabin was asleep. I was still stuck in the Hermes cabin because there was no cabin for Ate. Percy told me they were working on the construction of many other minor cabins, and it might be a while before they got to build a cabin for me, and that was only if they could find out enough about her.

I turned on the flashlight. I carefully opened the book, and felt a breeze blow through the cabin. I turned to the page after the warning, and read the Ancient Greek writing:

_Ate is the goddess of mischief, delusion, ruin, and folly. She represents the youthful and reckless part of a person's life, mainly when they were children. Ate herself is a carefree goddess, and there is much argument over whether she is a goddess, or just a free spirit. She is, however, very much a goddess and anyone who calls her otherwise is cursed with misfortune for their life._

_ Ate is the eldest daughter of Zeus and Hera, but she does not like to talk about them for the mistreat they put her through. Ate was sent by Hera to make Zeus promise that his next demigod child would have a blessing and become a great leader. Zeus, knowing that Hercules would be his next born son, promised, not knowing that his wife, Hera, would cause his other demigod son,_ _Eurystheus, to be born prematurely. Zeus, furious, blamed Ate for this and banned her from Olympus. Since then she has been causing misfortune to the lives of innocent mortants on earth. _

_ Ate has done many mischievous things in the affair of both gods and mortals alike. Once, Ate convinced a mortal, Ampelus, a mortal whom Dionysus loved, to impress him by riding on the back of a bull. Ampelus fell off the bull, though, and died from breaking her neck._

_ Ate is mentioned in much literature, including Shakespeare. Shakespeare states in his play, "Julius Ceaser" :_

_And Caesar's spirit, ranging for revenge,_

_With Atë' by his side come hot from Hell,  
Shall in these confines with a monarch's voice_

_Cry "Havoc!" and let slip the dogs of war, ..._

_She is mentioned again in another play of William's called, "Much Ado Without Nothing":_

_"Come, talk not of her. You shall find her the  
infernal Atë in good apparel..._

_ Ate's symbol is the apple, her sacred animal is the monkey, and she favors the color of amber._

I would have read more but I could feel my eyes getting heavy. As I lost consciousness and my need for sleep took over, I thought about my mother. She was just how my dad explained her. I tried to picture what her face might look like, but I couldn't.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.

The next morning I awoke to the sound of a horn. Time for breakfast. I yawned and stretched my way out of my sleeping bag. I pulled on a pair of jeans and my new camp t-shirt. On my way out the door I passed by the Stoll brothers.

"Jo," Travis said with an air of respect.

"Stolls," I said, returning the gesture.

After breakfast I headed to the library of cabin six, where I found a quiet corner to sit in. as I read the book I found there wasn't very much about Ate herself, but rather, the pranks she pulled on mankind. According to the text, she played a small part in almost every major hero's destruction; Hercules, Jason, Perseus, Odysseus, even if they didn't realize it. Turns out, all mischief and foolish decisions are a shadow of the work that Ate does on the lives of men. There was even some hints in artifacts and mythology that she may have played a part I the battle of Troy.

"Wow," I said. This lady made my pranks look like mere child's play.

I read for hours, happily soaking up the information I was receiving. I finally stopped when I heard a voice say, "Hey Chica".

I looked up and saw Leo.

"Why do you keep calling me that?" I asked.

"Because I know it annoys you," he said.

I rolled my eyes. I put a bookmark in my place and stood up.

"Have you found anything yet?" he asked, referring to the book.

"Yeah," I said. "It has lots of things I didn't even know".

"Great," he said, "Cause I have a plan".

I raised an eyebrow. "What plan?"

"It's a surprise," he said. "Follow me".

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

I followed Leo into the forest.

"Leo?" I said. "Are we supposed to not go into these woods?"

"Not alone," he said.

"I think I just saw something. Just my nerves probably," I tried to comfort myself. "Not a monster".

"Actually that probably was a monster," Leo said. "The forest's stocked as a challenge for the campers".

I gulped. "Now I know _why_ you're not supposed to go in here alone".

"But you're not alone," Leo said. "You have me".

"Yipee," I said.

We walked on until we came to a bog stone wall. Leo slapped a hand to it and curls of fire outlined a door. Leo stepped back and said, "Now close your eyes".

I closed them cautiously.

Leo guided me forward. I heard a stone door closing behind me, and I almost tripped a dozen times on things that clinked and wirred. Finally Leo stopped me.

"Wait here," He said. "And no peaking".

I waited with my eyes closed. Waiting was not something I was god at. Then, after what seemed like a lifetime, Leo spoke again. "Ok, open your eyes".

I opened tem and what I saw took my breath away. I was in the middle of a huge workshop, with many gears and greased joints, blueprints and several unfinished projects.

"Welcome to bunker nine," Leo said. "Here".

Leo handed me a rolled up blueprint. I unrolled it to reveal the basic plan for a building. Then I looked closer and realized it was a cabin. I looked at the top of the paper and the title read, μέρος της αναστάτωσης, which I translated to _place of mischief._

"These are plans for my cabin," I said.

Leo nodded. "Since we found the book, we'll have enough information to build a cabin. We'll get started tomorrow".

**So there's chapter 10! The information Jo read from the book is true, I researched it myself. The only thing I made up was the sacred animal and color because there wasn't any info on that. I just chose an animal and color that would make the most sense.**


	11. the Cursed Cabin

**Chapter 11! So, I'm pretty sure the thing that you're wondering about is Mandy. I mean, he just disappears when you just find out his true identity! Well, this chappie will bring him back, and reveal some secrets about him…**

**And on with the story!**

"Ok people, let's move out!" Leo shouted at his workers. He studied the blueprint in his hands. "This cabin's not going to build itself! Come on! Rapido! Rapido!"

"Leo, it's only six in the morning," I said, trying to adjust my hardhat. "We're all a little tired. And we're not behind schedule or anything".

"But I don't want to get behind schedule," Leo said. "So it's best if we stay ahead. Trust me, I built a whole war ship and I got it built on time".

I didn't know exactly what he meant by that, nor did I question it. Instead I asked, "So how are we going to get it built? I mean, we're get kids, and there aren't very many of us". This was true. Only a handful of campers had volunteered to help.

"Ah, Chica, but you forget who these kids are," Leo said with a gleam in his eye. "These are some of my own siblings. We all know a thing or two about mechanics and architecture".

"Ok," I said, though still a little confused.

"Ok people," Leo shouted. "Gather round".

A half a dozen half-bloods gather around Leo and I, awaiting instructions.

"Today we begin construction on the camp's newest cabin: number twenty one, Ate".

"But who's Ate?" one camper popped up. "How can we build a cabin for her if we don't know who she is?"

Leo raised a hand for silence. "I know you're all wondering that. I don't know the answers. But Jo does".

Everyone looked to me. I gulped and nervously stepped forward. "Ate is the goddess of mischief," I said. "She's the reason for the misfortune here on earth. She's been known for her cunning and witty way, especially towards men. Her symbols are the apple, monkey, and the color amber".

Leo nodded, then turned to his siblings. "Ok, now you have the idea. It'll take a few days to build it, so I'm hoping everyone is ready for that. Jo, I'm putting you in charge of design".

I nodded.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.

We worked for three days, getting the foundations in, setting up the basic structure. I didn't get to use my designs until the next week.

"So I was thinking we should make it sort of like a lair," I said. "with hidden doors everywhere, leading to different hidden rooms. I could put my pranking stuff in them, and plans".

Wow," said Nyssa, a sister of Leo's, "You really take pranking seriously".

I nodded proudly. "And there should be plenty of symbolism. All the furniture should be amber, and we have to figure out a way to put monkeys in there, oh, and apples".

"Don't worry," said Nyssa," We'll figure something out. Thanks for the blueprints".

"Sorry if they're a little vague, but designing a cabin's not as easy as it looks".

"This'll be fine," Nyssa said. "It'll be great".

Things went fine with the cabin for a while. Because most of my work was done with the cabin, I had more time to myself, which was a relief. Living with no one but my dad and Holly for most of my life, disconnected from the outside world, I was used to being alone, and realized I enjoyed the quiet. I sat on the pier by the lake and looked out into the horizon. The wind blew and I smelled the sweet scent of strawberries in the distance. I looked down into the water and saw the strangest thing. There was a girl under the water, weaving a basket with sea grass. She looked perfectly content with being underwater, and didn't show any signs of needing to come up for air. She looked up at me, smiled and waved. I waved back.

I took off my flip-flops and dipped my toes in the water. It was cool and pleasant to the touch in the hot June summer afternoon. I sighed in bliss as my troubles melted away.

"JO!" screamed a voice that shattered my bliss. I turned around to find Leo running toward me in a frantic sprint. "Jo! You've got to come!"

"What's the matter Leo?" I asked, standing up.

"There was—she—you'll have to see for yourself," he panted.

I followed Leo back to my cabin, where I bunch of campers were crowded around something. Leo and I pushed our way through, and saw that it was Nyssa. Her leg was buried under a beam that had fallen.

"What happened?" I asked.

"The beam just fell on top of her," Leo said. "All of the sudden".

"Are you sure it wasn't lose?" I asked.

"No," Leo said. "We reinforced all of them".

"It's ok guys," Nyssa said. "It's just a broken bone".

"But it doesn't make any sense," Leo said. "It shouldn't have fallen".

"What are you suggesting?"I asked.

"I don't know," Leo said. "But something definitely is not right".

There was a moment of silence. What was he talking about? It was strange, but it had to be a coincidence, right?

"Well," I said. "there's no sense thinking about it now. I'll get a kid from Ares to move the beam and someone from Apollo to fix the wound".

I did as I said I would, and soon Nyssa was in a cast, but she wouldn't be able to help us anymore.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

A week later something similar happened. A boy named Josh was sawing some wood when his arm got in the way. The medics said they could save it, but he would be out of commission for a while too. The same day, two kids slipped on some paint and bumped their heads and were now unconscious. A few days later, a girl named Audrey fell off a ladder and sprained an ankle. Accidents happened so frequently, people were starting to raise suspicions. Some started calling it the cursed cabin. I didn't believe that, but something was definitely up. I just didn't know what until the following week…

I was walking through the strawberry fields, when I heard a sound like a flute. It was coming from the woods. I would have ignored it if not for the fact that being ADHD, I was hopelessly curious. I cautiously crept into the forest, looking over my shoulder every so often.

The sound got closer, and I realized it didn't exactly sound like a flute. But what was it? I followed my ears, walking further into the place I wasn't supposed to venture into alone. Suddenly it stopped. I looked around. Where had it gone. Ten I heard it again, only farther away.

I walked on and on, until I heard the lunch horn in the distance. But I kept walking. I wasn't that hungry anyways. The sound got louder and louder, until I knew it was right behind that tree. I put my back against it. I suddenly was aware that there were monsters in these woods. What if I was following a monster? I slowly turned around to face the thing, and saw…nothing. That was strange. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a flash of brown fur, and I started jogging after it. The sound of a musical instrument I couldn't quite out a name to had continued, every now and then, and I saw flashes of brown fur. I didn't see the thing clearly.

Finally I stopped. I had lost it. I looked around, trying to quiet my breathing. I listened, straining my ears for anything they could pick up. Then I _smelled_ something. Barn animals. I turned around to see the retreating figure of…what was it? It had the legs of a goat, but the rest of its body was a man. I chased after it. Finally a climbed a tree and jumped, landing on it. It let out a low _oof_ and we both tumbled to the ground.

I stood up and looked down at the man. He wore a green t-shirt that read, _love the earth_. He was bald, and had the world's largest mustache.

I realized with shock who this was. "Mandy," I said.

"Hello Jo," Mandy said, standing up.

"Mandy," I said. "You—you're a—"

"I know you must be shocked," he said.

"That's the understatement of the year".

"—But please allow me to explain".

"Oh, you'd better explain!" I said. "Explain to me what you were doing that day with the spider, and why you _left me_!" I felt tears in my eyes all of the sudden.

Mandy looked down at the ground. "Jo," he said. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to leave either. But it was for the best—"

"For the best?" I asked, my voice shaky.

"It wasn't the right time," Mandy said. "I was what your mother would have wanted".

"Yeah but—wait," I said. "You knew my mother?"

Mandy groaned. "I shouldn't have told you about that".

"Tell me," I demanded. "Tell me what you know about my mother".

Mandy sighed. He sat on a log. I sat beside him. He was silent for a long time, as if contemplating what to say. Finally he spoke. "I knew your mother before you were born," he said. "I was on a quest, and I was in deep trouble. I didn't know how I was goinf to survive, then she came. Your mother, that is".

"What was she like?" I asked.

"Smart," he said. "And clever. And strangely kind. She helped me out of the situation I was in with no thought of payment. I was eternally grateful, and when she mentioned she would have a child soon, I felt obligated to help her. I pledged myself to protecting you until you were ready for camp". Mandy looked at me and smiled. "You look just like her you know".

"So I've heard," I said. "But why didn't you tell me this before? I've spent all my life wondering about my mother, and when my dad died, I didn't have anyone to tell me about her".

"I couldn't," Many said. "My job as a protector satyr is to watch over you and keep you from harm until you're ready. And it only makes things worse if you know who you are".

I looked down at the ground. "But I know now. So a satyr, that what it's called. I think I remember hearing something about them in school".

Mandy chuckled. "You seem pretty calm about the fact that your gardener is half goat".

I shrugged. "I've seen weirder things at this camp".

Suddenly I heard a horn for dinner. How had time gone so fast?

"I should probably head back," I said. "I already missed lunch and people will start to wonder whether I made it through the day or not".

I got up to go, but Mandy said, "Wait". I turned.

"Take this," he said. He placed in my hand a smallish object. I looked and saw that it was a sheathed dagger.

"Your mother wanted you to have it," he said.

I held it gingerly. My mother wanted to give me this? I unsheathed it, revealing a bronze blade that gleamed brighter than anything. I could see my reflection in it, and when I looker closer, I saw an engraving. The symbols read, αταξίες.

"Ataxies," I read.

"That's the name of the blade. It is very important to history, this blade. Very sad history, but important".

"It's Greek for Mischief," I said. I sheathed the dagger, thanked Mandy, and headed back to camp. As I left the forest, I wondered when the next time I would see Mandy would be.

**Pretty cool huh? But there's still more about Mandy, but that will be revealed in the next chapter. Bye bye now!**


	12. What a Way to Spend a Tuesday Morning!

**chapter 12! **

The freak accidents concerning the construction of my new cabin continued through the whole thing. It was eventually finished, but not until two weeks after the date we were supposed to finish it. By now the whole camp was aware of the "cursed cabin" and stayed as far away from it as possible.

The day it was done, I walked into it alone, clutching my book of Ate close to my chest. I opened the door and gasped. It was even better than what I imagined. The main room was that of a traditional cabin, with bunks and racks for weapons. All the blankets and pillows were amber, and throughout the whole place there was a homey presence. i felt right at home instantly. i walked through it and saw a portrait on the wall of monkeys of every kind; snow, mandrin, capuchin, spider, even an owl monkey. I walked over to it and placed a hand on it. the painting slid aside, leading to another room. I walked into the other room and saw a lair of sorts, with shelves for pranking materials and monitors that showed a view of the camp, and on a desk, a war map with little figurines to represent certain people; Chiron, Percy, Mr. D, even a few that i didn't even know.

I looked to a small table to see a bowl of apples, as red as rubies. I picked one up and the table collapsed, revealing a hole in the floor. I slid down the fireman's pole into another room. This one was filled with pranking things; balloons, water guns, dye, and an endless supply of firecrackers. My heart warmed at the sight of this. I was home.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

Things went on normally and soon I got used to my new cabin, and considered it home. As the days went by I got used to my solitude again, and realized that I had forgotten how being alone felt in my time staying in the Hermes cabin. But one thing still lingered in my mind: where was Mandy? It had been days with no word of him. Had something happened to him? Should I go back into the forest to find him? I didn't figure out why he seemed to be hiding until I least expected it.

I woke up to the sound of birds singing. I stretched, yawned, and got out of bed. I dazedly walked over to my vanity, which gleamed gold and studded with amber jewels and jeweled apples that were as red as rubies. I opened my eyes and looked at my reflection. My hair was frizzy, and my eyes were foggy. I set to work getting ready for the day, planning out my activities. Little did I know what kind of trouble I would get myself into soon.

I walked over to the dining pavilion, where my table had been recently constructed, and sat down as a plate of waffles and eggs was placed in front of me. When I got up to the fire to give a burnt offering, I was pushed aside by a big girl with stringy brown hair.

"Watch it Girly," she grunted.

"Hey!" I protested.

The girl turned around, revealing an ugly face. "You say something to me Twig?"

"Yeah," I said. "You shouldn't push".

I caught out of the corner of my eye Annabeth. She was vigorously shaking her head, giving me an obvious warning. The big girl gritted her teeth. "You back off, or that smart mouth of yours is gonna be punched".

"You don't scare me," I said. This was true. I feared this girl no more than I feared my "cursed" cabin.

The big girl pushed her tray of Fruit Loops into one of her siblings' hands and picked me up by the collar. "Oh, you'd better be. Do you have any idea who I am, little worm?"

Suddenly I heard a hoof pounding on the pavement. Chiron said, "I think Miss Goodrace has had enough, Clarisse".

Reluctantly Clarisse set me down. I smiled and continued making my way to the fire to give the gods a part of my breakfast. I threw a waffle into the fire and said, "Ate. Thanks for claiming me Mom". I was about to walk away when something strange happened. The waffle, instead of burning, flew right back out of the fire and onto the floor. I thought this was unusual, but the people around me acted like this was completely horrible. They acted like I had just committed an unforgivable sin. I looked around at them, but it was Chiron who spoke up.

"Never in all my years..." he said. He turned to me.

"What?" I asked. "What did I do?"

"Your mother has rejected your offering," he said. "This has never happened".

Ominous murmuring broke out among the campers, and I awkwardly made my way to my seat. I tried not to look anyone in the eye while I ate, and it was really hard to because everyone kept glancing over at me.

While I was eating, I noticed Percy. He usually sat by himself, but today someone else was sitting by him. It was a satyr with curly hair and a t-shirt that read, _got hooves?_ The satyr and Percy were talking like they were old friends, laughing and sharing jokes and stories. I wondered where Percy knew him from.

Then the satyr looked in my direction and I gasped. He looked familiar, like I had seen him somewhere before recently. His eyes...where had I seen those eyes before? Then he looked away and continued to talk to Percy.

After breakfast, Percy introduced me to him.

"Jo, I'd like you to meet Grover," he said. "Grover, this is Jo, the new camper I told you about".

"Pleased to meet you Jo," Grover said, shaking my hand. "Who's your godly parent?"

"Ate," I said, and when he furrowed his eyebrows in confusion I said, "The Goddess of mischief".

"Oh," he said. "I think I've heard something about her before. So how do you like camp?"

"It's amazing," I said, smiling.

"That's good," he said.

"Jo, I've been talking to Grover, and we've been wondering something. Satyrs, in the magical world, are protectors of demigods, you know. Grover was my protector".

"I know," I said

"Oh," he said, frowning. "Well, it's a very important part of a satyr's life".

"What he means to say," Grover said, "Is that we want to know who your protector".

I bit my lip. Why did they want to know about Mandy? "I, um, didn't have one," I lied.

"Really?" said Percy. "You can't remember anyone? Maybe they just didn't tell you about yourself. Did you ever have any friends that walked funny, or seemed to have an almost goat-like laugh?"

I looked down at the ground. "I've never had a friend in my life before camp".

"Oh," Percy said, looking at the ground. "Well, if you remember anything at all, just find either me or Grover. We need to take record of the demigods that the satyrs have rescued".

"I will," I lied again.

Percy and Grover turned to walk away, and I

heard Grover mutter, "I do not walk funny".

When I got back to my cabin, I headed straight for the room with the maps, a room I called the Scheme room, and plotted a prank for that day. That girl, Clarisse, had given me an idea...

I had heard plenty of stories about this girl. I knew she was the daughter of Ares, that she was the meanest, toughest bully at camp, and she wouldn't hesitate to pound me to a pulp if I looked at her wrong. Heck, she had slayed a drakon almost all by herself. She was just the challenge I needed. And she had been wrong to cross me. I set up, and soon I was stalking to cabin five.

I held up my water gun to my chest, breathing just barely. When one of the campers of cabin five came out, I slipped in.

The room looked like a war room. All the campers looked deadly, and it was a good thing they hadn't seen me come in. Taxidermy covered the walls, but these were of monsters and wild beasts you wouldn't normally find on your typical hunters' wall. Weapons lay everywhere, ready to be used at any moment.

I found Clarisse, studying a war map. I reached in my pocket and pulled out an invention of mine. It was a small cloth pouch filled with—well, if I told you, it wouldn't be a secret anymore. With as much effort as I had, I threw it point-blank at the back of Clarisse's head. It hit her, sending up a cloud of orange. Clarisse let out a bellow of rage, and I barely escaped a random blow to the face. I jumped up and ran just slow enough so Clarisse would follow, and sprinted out the door.

"GOODRACE!" she bellowed.

I looked back and laughed. The bomb had worked just how I wanted it to. From head to toe Clarisse was bright orange. I raised my water gun, which of course was filled with something more effective than water: pickle juice, and squirted it. Clarisse screamed and ran faster, yelling how she was going to kill me. I just laughed and ran faster, keeping her out of reach.

We ran all through the camp, bringing much attention from the other campers. At some time I ducked into a cabin, just to catch my breath.

"Jo, what are you doing?" said a voice I could never mistake. Leo appeared next to me.

"Oh, hi Leo," I said. "I'm just seizing the day".

"The whole camp's been talking about you," he said. "They said you're gonna die".

"Die?" I laughed "I'm not going to die Leo. I just pranked Clarisse".

Leo's jaw dropped. "Yep," he said. "You're gonna die".

"I'm not gonna die," I insisted.

Suddenly I heard a roar right outside the cabin.

"That's my queue," I said.

"Wait!" Leo said, and chased after me.

I walked outside the cabin, where Clarisse saw me.

"Goodrace!" she shouted. "You are dead! You hear me! D-e..." Clarisse stopped. "D-i...D-a-e...you know what I mean!"

I just smiled and squirted my pickle-gun in her face. Pickle juice trickled down her nose.

Then I took off, Leo right behind me.

"You've got to be crazy!" he shouted.

"You're right about that," I said. "Man, what a way to spend a Tuesday morning!"

Finally we came to my cabin, number twenty one, and Clarisse stopped. I stood in my doorframe, taunting her. "Aren't you going to come kill me?" I asked.

Clarisse shook her head. "Nuh uh," she said seriously. "You gotta be crazy to go in there. It's cursed. _You're_ cursed".

I closed the door on her, laughing. But what she had said made me uncomfortable. _I_ was cursed? That's really what people thought of me?

I shook my head. I refused to believe in curses. I looked at Leo, who was admiring the cabin. "Great place," he said.

"Well you built it," I said.

"I wonder what all is in here," he said.

I furrowed my eyebrows. "You built it," I said again. "You should know it".

"I don't know the secret passages," he said.

"Oh," I said. "Well, would you like to see a few?"

"Really?"

I showed Leo the scheme room, and he ogled over everything he saw.

"So you can see everything in camp?" he asked, fiddling with the controls on the computer.

"I guess," I had never given it much thought.

"What was that that you put on Clarisse?" Leo asked. "That stuff that made her orange".

I smiled proudly. "That is an invention of mine I call a tan bomb".

"A tan bomb?"

"It has a mixture of tanning spray and a few ingredients to make a powder that will give one an instant over tan," I explained. "It took me years to perfect".

"Cool," he said. Leo got up and we walked to a doorway. Suddenly I heard a creak. I stopped and looked up. There was a little crack in the arch, getting bigger every moment. I heard a _crack!_ And I screamed, "LEO!"

"Uh?" he said, but was knocked aside by me. At the same time, the arch broke, and I was buried under a mound of wood and marble.

**So there's chapter 12! Hop you like it. Remember, review please!**


	13. Bad Luck

I woke up in a bed, bright lights casting down, blinding me. I opened my eyes and groaned. My head hurt so bad…

The world around me was foggy and my senses were stultified. Where was I? I blinked a few times and found my sight. I was in some sort of sick room, but I was the only patient there. I tried to lift my head, but it felt like lead being struck by a hammer. I groaned again, and this time someone answered.

"Jo?" a voice said. I figure appeared over me, and it took a few minutes for my eyes to focus enough that I could see it was Leo.

"Leo?" I said, squinting. My voice was raspy.

"Oh my gods Jo," Leo said with wide eyes. "Thank Apollo your ok".

"I…I don't understand," I said. "What happened?"

Leo furrowed his eyebrows. "What do you mean? Don't you remember anything?"

"I think…I remember the arch. I pushed you out of the way…and…and…" I shook my head. "That's all".

"You were buried under the wreckage," Leo said. "We all thought you were dead".

"Dead?" I was taken aback by this.

"Yeah," Leo said. "We searched for hours, and we found you crumpled under some beams. You certainly looked dead".

"I…I did?"

"Yes," Leo said. He looked genuinely shaken. His face was pale and he was tapping his fingers nervously. "It took lots of ambrosia and nectar, plus our best medics to get you back in full health. You had many cuts, a broken ankle, and a major concussion".

I felt my head and found a thick bandage wrapped around my curly black hair. My ankle, though, wasn't broken. That was odd. Unless... "Leo," I said. "How long was I unconscious?"

Leo shifted nervously. "You were in a coma for five weeks".

My jaw dropped. "But…How?"

"Look Jo, I know you're probably really confused right now," Leo said, "But the best thing for you is to rest". Leo walked out of the room, closing the door behind him.

*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*

I couldn't sleep. I lay awake in bed, staring up at the ceiling. How could I sleep with what Leo had just told me? I managed to sit up and turn a nightstand lamp on. The light filled the room with a faint glow, and in the corner of the room I saw a figure. I screamed.

"Jo, be quiet," said a familiar deep voice. "It's only me". Mandy stepped into view.

"Mandy," I breathed a sigh of relief. "You scared me. What are you doing here?"

"I heard you were in a coma," he said. "It's good to know your better now".

"Why are you whispering?" I said. "It's the middle of the night. No one's awake to hear you".

"I can't let anyone know I'm here," Mandy said.

I raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"That isn't important right now," Mandy said. "I need to know how you were injured".

I bit my lip. "It's nothing really".

"Something that gives a coma definitely doesn't seem like nothing," Mandy said.

I sighed. "I was just in my cabin when an arch fell on me," I said. "I'm sure it was just a loose screw or something".

"You should have been more careful," Mandy said. "Wait. Your cabin?"

"Yeah. I worked with some people from cabin nine to build a cabin for me, you know, to represent my mom".

Mandy's eyes widened. "Oh, no".

"What?" I was confused.

"Jo, you should not have built a cabin to represent Ate. This is really bad".

"What's so bad about it?"

"Building that cabin has brought up a powerful resentment again," Mandy said. "You have no idea how unlucky this is".

"You're starting to sound like some sort of superstition," I said.

"This is no superstition," Mandy said. "This is a matter of luck".

I leaned back. "I don't believe in luck".

"Quite ironic for someone like you," Mandy said.

"Someone like me?"

"Have you ever noticed how things keep going wrong for you?" Mandy asked. "How nothing seems to go right, try as you might?"

I looked down at my lap. "That has nothing to do with luck, or superstition. That's just life. And anyways, what's the difference between the two?"

"Superstition is the belief that something as silly as salt or a clover came change luck," Mandy explained. "But Luck, with a capital L, is a force in the universe that controls the outcome of things".

"But I told you, I don't believe in it," I said. "Luck is just a stupid made up idea that gets peoples' hopes up about nothing".

"As I told you, that's very peculiar for someone like you".

"Why someone like me?" I demanded. "What's so special about me?!"

"Luck follows you wherever you go," Mandy said. "Unfortunately it is bad Luck, but Luck all the same".

"I get it that I'm really _unfortunate_," I said. "But unfortunate and bad luck, cursed if you will, are two different things".

"It is more than just that," Mandy said. "Bad Luck is more than just all around you. It's inside of you, and in more ways than one".

"What do you mean?"

"Have you ever considered the day you were born?"

I looked down. "So I was born on Friday the thirteenth. So what?"

"It is a very unlucky day to be born," Mandy said. "That bad Luck harbors inside of you, whether you believe in it or not".

"But what does that have to do with the cabin?" I asked. "You suggested it did. But how? My mom is the goddess of mischief, not bad Luck".

"She still has some influence over it," Mandy said. "Mischief is connected with bad Luck. That, taken with your birth date, is a very powerful thing. It is also why you live an unlucky life".

I was silent. I didn't know what to think. Mandy was sounding like some sort of crazy illusionist Luck freak, but his claims made some sense. But I shook my head and shouted. "You're crazy! I don't believe in Luck, or superstitions, or any of that ridiculous voodoo! Get out of here!"

"Jo," Mandy said. "You have to understand—"

"Get Out!"

Mandy fell silent. "Very well," he said sadly. Suddenly the lamp went out, and Mandy was gone.

**So there's the next chapter! Just so you know, I'm not sure just how much influence Ate has over luck in mythology. It only says she brings about bad luck on the lives of men on earth. So, like, if you ever need information on Ate, don't use this story for your research because some of it might be exaggerated. **

**Guess what? Without these last 4 sentences, this chapter is exactly 1,111 words! And that's a lucky number! It's a number that has to do with the magic square, which is a square with numbers on it, and when added in different ways, they add up to things like 1,111 and 6,666. Neat huh? What are the odds?!**


	14. Capture the Flag Goes Horribly Wrong

**Chapter 14! You know what I noticed about last chapter? It's about Jo, and her bad Luck, and how she was born on Friday the 13****th****, and it was also chapter 13! I'm like freaking out because it was also 1,111 words long (if you don't count the sentences where I was telling you that). And I didn't even plan it out!**

By the third day of my regaining consciousness, I was well enough to walk around the room. By the third week, I was fully recovered. When I stepped out if the big house, I had never been so happy to see the sun. I immediately headed towards the cabins for a well missed prank.

One day at diner I heard Chiron pound his hoof on the marble floor. "I want to remind everyone that capture the flag is tomorrow".

The whole camp burst into whoops of cheer. _Capture the flag?_ I thought. _Not exactly the sort of game for a demigod training camp._ Boy, was I in for a surprise.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

The next day, Annabeth helped me strap up my armor for capture-the-flag. The armor was huge on me. I wondered how I would manage to move in it.

"You nervous?" Annabeth asked while she laced it up.

"Kind of," I admitted. "I've never played capture-the-flag".

"Well I have a feeling you'll like it," Annabeth smiled. "I remember my first game. And Percy's".

I strapped my dagger, Ataxies, and headed off towards the woods.

"So who's on my team?" I asked.

"Our team, the blue team, is mainly Athena, Dionysus, Aphrodite, Demeter, and most of the minor cabins. Ares, Poseidon, Hephaestus, Hermes, and all the other smaller cabins," Annabeth explained.

I thought about that for a second. "That makes a lot of enemies of mine on the opposing team. Some people from Hermes and Ares".

Annabeth smiled. "Don't worry. Athena's on your side. Athena always has a plan".

"So what am I going to be doing?"

"Since it's just your first game, I figured I'd put you on border patrol".

Just then Clarisse walked by and grabbed me by the shirt. "Prepare yourself girly," she growled. "This is going to be a battle you'll never forget, to remind you never to mess with me".

She stalked away, growling.

I gulped. "Well, looks like I'll be on _invisible_ border patrol then".

Annabeth was looking in the direction of Clarisse. I could see in her eyes that she was formulating something. "What's up with Clarisse's skin?" she asked. "It's orange. And she smells like pickles".

"Oh, that's a prank I pulled on her," I said passively.

"_You_ did that?" Annabeth asked, slightly in awe.

"Yeah".

"That's really brave," the blonde said, and I could see the gears in her head turning. "To stand up to Clarisse. You know what? I think I have something different in mind for you for capture-the-flag…"

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

"Are you ready?" Annabeth asked.

"Am I ready?" I said, my tone laced with sarcasm. "Annabeth, I was born ready for these things".

Annabeth smiled. "Ok, now remember to stay off the path".

"Right".

"And out of sight".

"Of course".

"And if you need any help, just blow this whistle," Annabeth handed me a small, slender silver whistle. "It's enchanted so that only people on our team will hear it. If you blow it, a team member will come to your aid. Probably a satyr since they have the best ears…"

I took the whistle and put it in my pocket. I shouldered my backpack. I heard a horn in the distance, and the game was on.

I skulked in the shadows on the trees, not making a sound. I moved with fluid-like agility through the forest, so much so that no member from the red team even had the suspicion I was there.

I ducked behind a tree and slipped the backpack off my shoulders. Out of it I produced a rope, a can of sardines, a balloon, and a small flare rocket. I quickly set to work, and my small scheme was complete. I peeked an eye around the tree and saw two kids with bows: children of Apollo. I nimbly climbed the tree and peered down at my victims. I hefted the balloon, which, of course, was filled with sardines, and chucked it soundlessly at the two demigods. It exploded all over them, creating just the right effect of surprise. The stunned half-bloods looked up, and because they weren't looking at the ground, they didn't see the rope at their feet. Suddenly they were zipped through the air and were dangling by their feet in the ropes high in the tree blanches.

I climbed down, smiled up at them, and shot off the first flare, which, being blue and invisible to the red team, would alert my team to come and pick up their captives.

Walking casually away, I planned my next move of attack.

It was some time before I found my next victim. And, as Luck would have it, it was Percy and Leo.

Percy and Leo were scouting their territory, searching for members of the blue team.

Immediately I ducked into a bush. Grabbing a rubber duck, a net, honey, and a bag of feathers, I quickly climbed a tree, set the net on one of its branches and tied a string to it, and slipped back into the bush without Percy or Leo noticing.

This, except for the net, was a prank I had created long ago, and I liked to call it, "Operation Birdie". From inside the bush, I tossed the rubber duck out into the open.

Percy saw it first. He eyed it, brows furrowed, sword drawn. Then he inched forward and picked it up, finally calling to Leo, "Hey, look". The two looked confusedly at the small rubber toy, and because they were looking down at it they didn't see the mass on honey that poured out of the tree tops and covered them. Percy and Leo both shouted, "Ew!" and tried without success to rid themselves of the sticky goo. Then a huge pile of feathers rained down from the heavens and covered them, so they looked like birds. The feathers were followed by a net, which trapped them.

Flare in hand, I appeared out of the bush and strolled to Percy and Leo with a smile.

"Jo?" Percy said, somewhat in unbelief.

"That's my name, don't wear it out," I said.

"Jo, I should have known," Leo said, trying to spit a feather out of his mouth.

I smiled again. "Yeah, I little proposition Annabeth had. I sent the flare and walked away.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

The game was amazing. One after another I pranked and successfully captured several of the enemy. And I was having the time of my life. But then, as most things in my life do, it went bad.

I was sneaking through the forest when I came upon something. Atop a pile of rocks was a flag with the head of a boar on it. I felt excitement rise in me because I knew this was the flag of the other team. I looked around. There was nobody guarding it. I looked at the flag once more. If I could get the flag and make it to the other side, I would win the game. Without much hesitation, I sprinted to the flag.

But before I could get there, I was tripped by none other than Clarisse.

"Well, well," she growled, "What do we have here? The little prankster thought she could just steal my flag? Rookie mistake, imp".

I struggled to my feet and attempted to run, but Clarisse grabbed the back of my shirt, for I had long ago shed my armor. "Not so fast imp," Clarisse said.

I didn't know what else to do, so, following instinct, I drew my dagger. Clarisse chuckled and pulled out a spear that crackled with electricity. She swung the spear, and I just barely dodged it. The hairs on my head stood on end.

Clarisse came at me again, and this time I acted. I swiped with my dagger, and then Clarisse's spear lay in two pieces on the ground.

"What?" Clarisse seemed genuinely confused. I was shocked as well. In a battle with a spear and dagger, surely the dagger wouldn't win. I looked at the blade. It gleamed bronze, with a black leather bound hilt. On the end of the hilt was a ruby in the shape of an apple.

I was distracted for too long, because I suddenly felt a punch in the jaw, and I was on the ground again. Before I knew it, Clarisse was standing over me, a smile spread on her face. I closed my eyes and raised a hand, like that would protect me. I awaited Clarisse's attack, but it never came. I opened my eyes and saw Clarisse gone. There were no foot prints, nothing to indicate that she hadn't just vanished into thin air.

I stood up and looked around. What I saw froze me in my place and stole a scream from my throat. It was a huge mass of scales, teeth, and claws. A dragon.

But not just any dragon. This dragon had so many heads, I couldn't even see them all at the same time. The dragon hissed with all of its many heads and breathed fire, and I just barely ran out of the way in time.

I had learned about demigod battle reflexes, otherwise known as ADHD, but I had never seen, or felt, it in action. I knew I had no chance at killing this beast with only a dagger, but my reflexes didn't listen. I dodged and weaved through the dragon's many heads with ability I never knew I had.

A dragon head lashed out and snapped at me, but at the last second I unsheathed my dagger and stabbed it in the eye. The dragon screamed in agony, but it had many more heads to see.

Suddenly I heard a sound that was a cross between a roar and a bleat, and Mandy was beside me.

"What have you done?!" he yelled, hefting a huge club.

"What have I done?" I yelled, kicking a dragon head. "I'm being attacked by a hundred-headed dragon, and all you can do is pin it on me?"

"Well," Mandy said, whacking a dragon head and dodging fire, "You _do_ have a reputation for doing things".

I slashed with my dagger and looked at Mandy incredulously, then nodded and shrugged. "Can't deny that, but how do I kill this thing?!"

"I—" Mandy said. "I'm not sure". Suddenly Mandy was whacked with the dragon's tail and was sent flying through the air, where he hit a tree and slumped to the ground.

"Mandy!" I screamed. I turned back to the dragon. It stared at me with eyes of hate. I knew the end was near. There was no way I was going to defeat this thing. I prayed to every god I could think of that I would make it to Elysium. _Please Hades_, I thought,_ I didn't mean all those pranks. It was just a bit of fun._

Suddenly I noticed my pocket was heavier. My eyes widened as I pulled out the whistle Annabeth had given me. without hesitation, I blew on it as hard as I could. A sharp, high-pitched sound rang in the air.

In a matter of minutes I heard a bleating sound, and a satyr came into view. It was Grover.

"Jo!" he yelled when he saw the dragon. "What did you do?!"

"Why does everyone think I did it?" I shouted.

Grover groaned and dodged a dragon head. "I have an idea," he said.

"Ideas are good," I said, slashing with my dagger.

"You distract it," Grover said.

"Ok," I said, then ran off in the opposite direction, screaming. The dragon roared and turned toward me and away from Grover. I slashed and dodged, while I trusted that Grover knew what he was doing.

Out of his pocket, Grover produced a pair of reed pipes. He lifted them to his lips and began to play. The weeds around the dragon's feet began to twist and grow.

I looked at Grover in amazement, but quickly discovered not to get distracted when fighting a dragon. I kicked and the one of the dragon's heads screamed.

The weeds grew and grew, encasing the dragon in roots. Finally the whole thing was encased in a tree, and was nothing more than another tree in the forest.

I sighed and leaned against the tree. "Nice job Goat boy".

Grover squinted his eyes at the name, but nodded.

I looked up at the tree. "Wow. Do you think it's still alive?"

A muffled roar from inside the tree answered me, and I stepped away from it. Then I remembered. "Mandy!" I ran over to the older satyr. Mandy was breathing, but unconscious.

"Oh, come on Mandy," I murmured. "Wake up".

Grover walked over, but didn't say a word. The look on his face was one that I couldn't quite place.

Mandy's eyes fluttered open. "What?" he said.

"Mandy, you're alive!" I hugged him.

"Um, yes," Mandy said, trying to stand. Then he saw Grover, and he froze.

"Mandy," Grover said.

I looked between the two satyrs. "You know Mandy?"

Mandy put a hand to his forehead. "Oh, no".

"Mandy, I thought you were dead!" Grover yelled. "All these years!"

"I know, and I'm sorry Grover, but it was for the best".

"How is it the best when I'm lied to?"

"Wait!" I said. "Mandy, how do you know Grover?"

"Jo," Grover said. "Mandy is my uncle".

**So there's chapter 14! hope you liked it!**


	15. My Dream of Ate

**Chapter 15!**

"He's _what_?!" I shouted.

"Jo," Grover said. "Don't freak out".

"Freak out?" I said. "That's the understatement of the century!"

"Jo," Mandy put a hand to his forehead. "Calm down".

"How can I calm down?" I said. "You've been lying to both me _and_ Grover!"

"She's got a point Uncle Mandy," Grover admitted.

"Don't call him that!" this was just too weird.

Suddenly I heard a horn, and then dozens of war cries.

"Capture-the-flag is over," Grover said.

"Go," Mandy said.

"No, Mandy," I said, calming down a little. "You're hurt". I pointed to the wounds from the dragon.

"I'll be fine," Mandy said. "Besides, no one else can know I'm here".

"But—"

The horn blew again.

"Go!"

Grover grabbed my arm, and we sprinted through the forest. We ran recklessly through the trees and underbrush, tripping every so often.

"Grover!" I called. "Why did we leave Mandy?"

"He told us to!" Grover said, not releasing his grip from my wrist. "I think Mandy can take care of himself!"

"But what will happen to him? What if we never see him again?"

Grover didn't answer.

Suddenly we stopped near the edge of the forest, close to the camp. There was a crowd of campers cheering around Annabeth and Katie Gardener, who were holding a flag that shimmered silver with an owl.

When Grover and I approached the crowd turned and fell silent.

"Grover, Jo," Annabeth said, relieved. "There you are. Where were you? We were about to send search parties".

I was about to answer when suddenly a voice yelled, "You demon!"

I turned to find Clarisse, half of her spear in hand, stalking toward us. "You demon girl! How dare you threaten this camp!"

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

Clarisse grabbed me by the collar. "Oh, you know, you filthy little imp. Bringing your mishap here. Do you think I don't see your scheme?"

"Woah," said Chiron, who galloped over. "Set the girl down Clarisse".

Clarisse did so.

"What are you talking about Clarisse?" Chiron asked.

Clarisse pointed to me. "This girl has summoned Typhoeus".

The camp gasped. I looked around. All the demigods were looking at me as if I had committed a horrible, unforgivable sin.

"Jo," Chiron said, deadly serious. "Is this true?"

"I don't know what she's talking about," I said. "Who's Typhoeus?"

"Don't lie," Clarisse growled "I saw to with my own eyes. and I have proof too". Clarsse handed to Chiron a smooth, gem-like object. I looked at it more closely and realized it was a dragon scale.

Chiron scrutinized the scale, then looked at me with a look of stone. "Everyone back to your cabins," he said in a cold voice. "We'll have a war meeting tomorrow".

Everyone, even Clarisse, headed back to their cabins. I looked up at Chiron with a trembling lip. "Chiron," I said. "I swear—"

Chiron raised his hand for silence. "I don't know exactly what is going on," he said, "But I hope I will soon find out. It's getting late Jo. Go to your cabin".

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

That night I had a dream. And even though my dreams had gotten worse sinse my coming to camp, this one was a whopper.

I was in a subway station, but there were no people. In the center, a young apple tree blossomed white flowers, though there was no soil. Standing next to the tree was the woman in the amber cloak. At her feet sat a monkey, nibbling at an apple blossom.

"How dare you…" said the cloaked woman.

I took a step back. "What?"

"How dare you," repeated the woman. "Acting like you're welcome without proving your worth".

"What are you talking about?" I asked. "Who are you?"

The woman took a step towards me. She lifted her hands and pulled back the hood, revealing long black hair and silver eyes. though I had never seen her face before I immediately recognized her. "Mom".

"Don't call me that," Ate said with cold eyes. though we looked much alike, except that her hair was straight and mine was curly, the personality conflict made us seem like twp completely unrelated people. "You dare think that you can just come all willy-nilly into my arms without proving yourself? You are a pompous oaf".

I was taken aback by this woman's language. "I am _not_ a pompous oaf! How dare you call your own daughter that!"

"If you're not, then prove it!" Ate shouted. She crossed her arms and said, "I thought my daughter would have been raised better than this".

"Maybe I would have if you had been there," I said. "Or, oo I know! Maybe if you hadn't let Dad die!"

"I can't control the life of a mortal," Ate said. "But it's still no excuse for the pampered behavior you're showing".

"Pampered?" I said. "How is living life without a mom or dad pampered?"

"Most of your life was spent in a mansion," Ate said. "You could have anything your heart desired with just the snap of a finger. You were only asked f one thing: to prove yourself worthy of my inheritance, but you still couldn't live with having to do something that requires work other than your pranks".

"I thought you would be proud of my pranks".

"I am proud of your pranks," Ate said. "But you have to do something other than that to show me you really care about your position as the daughter of mischief".

I fell silent. Had I really let spoil get in the way of things? Was I really asking too much, just assuming that I didn't have to do anything for Ate to accept me? I looked up at my mother. "What can I do?"

Ate uncrossed her arms, sensing my sincerity. "I'll give you one last chance. It will present itself to you soon".

Ate started to fade.

"Wait!" I shouted. "I need to know about my bad Luck! What do I do about it?!"

"Don't push away from it," Ate said, still fading. "Embrace it. For your greatest weakness is also your greatest strength".

Then suddenly I was falling, falling in a dark pit.


	16. I am Given a Quest

**Chapter 16! So, I've recently been thinking about the Kane Chronicles, which I think is the best trilogy (notice I said trilogy and not series in general) in the world! You know when in the last book, Carter and Sadie mention something about magic as far as long island? Am I the only one that thinks Rick Riordan should write a crossover?! Well, I thought, that might be a little cliché for professional writing, so I looked at the crossover stories on fanfiction. But, as it turns out, most of the stories (or at least all of the many I tried reading) either have such poor grammar I have trouble comprehending it, or they try and make messed up romance (ie: Percy/Sadie and Sadie/Nico) or both! It got me upset. So, I thought, why not do something about it? So, I'm thinking I might someday write a crossover story for pjo-HoO/Kane Chronicles. But even if I did, it would be just a thought to tuck away in my mind for now cause I'm already writing two fanfiction stories at once, AND I'm working on editing a novel that I plan to publish. Does anyone think I should write a crossover story?**

**Anyways, enough with my rambling. Let's turn the spotlight on Jo!**

The next morning Chiron called an immediate war meeting right after breakfast. I sat distanced from the other camp counselors in the rec room. No one would look me in the eye. They all regarded me as though I had been infected with small pox. My first war meeting was not exactly the most memorable.

Chiron wheeled into the room, for it was way too small for horse-form, and called the meeting to order.

"I'm sure by now you've all heard about the situation and know why you're here," he said.

I shrank away even further.

"And I am sure that many of you are confused—"

"Just cut to the chase Chiron!" Clarisse interjected. "We all know we're here because a camper has betrayed us. And we all know who it was".

Everyone's eyes turned on me.

I tucked my legs up to my chest, wanting to disappear. I cast my eyes down, wishing myself away.

"Clarisse," Chiron scolded, "I know that…situations lead…toward someone's betrayl, but I will not tolerate assumptions against your own kind!"

Clarisse fell reluctantly silent. "Go on Imp," she muttered to me. "Tell them what happened".

I looked into the ancient eyes of Chiron, and stuttered, "I—I don't…I didn't do anything".

Chiron silenced cries of protest from the other demigods. He leaned in towards me. "Jo, if you did not summon Typhoeus, then who did?" he didn't seem angry or doubtful. I noticed with a shock that he was silently pleading that I was innocent.

"First of all," I said, "Who is Typhoeus?"

"Typhoeus," Chiron said, "was a fire-breathing dragon with a hundred heads that never rest".

My eyes widened.

"He was created my Gaea, as a sort of last effort to kill the Olympians in the first Titan war. The dragon sent many of the gods fleeing, and even managed to capture Zeus".

I put a hand over my mouth. "Oh, no," I said. I was horrified at the suspicion I was forming.

Chiron kept him tone calm, but deadly serious. "Jo, does this beast sound familiar to you?"

I looked at Chiron and managed to swallow the lump in my throat. "Yes".

The campers around me gasped. I stole a glance over at Percy and Annabeth. They were looking at me in disbelief and horror.

"But," I said, silencing the crowd of demigods, "I didn't summon him purposefully".

"Typhoeus can only come to earth anymore if he's summoned," Clarisse said, her voice dripping with hatred. "If you didn't summon him, who did?!"

"You didn't hear the last of what I said," I said, tears misting my eyes. "I said _purposefully_".

Clarisse backed off, but only because she was confused. The other campers seemed perplexed too. Only Chiron seemed to have an inkling of understanding.

"Let me explain," I said. "As you all know, my mother is Ate, the goddess of mischief".

The campers all nodded.

"Well, what you don't know is that Ate also has some influence over Luck as well. Therefore, I've been bound to an unfortunate life".

A camper from Demeter, Katie Gardener, spoke up, "But what does that have to do with anything?"

"There's more," I said. "I was born on Friday the thirteenth".

The campers gasped again. Even Chiron seemed surprised. "Jo," he said, "Why didn't you tell us this before? Do you realize how dangerous that is?"

"The cursed cabin," someone said. "It's because of you. It all makes sense".

"Yes," I said, lowering my head in shame, eyes dropping tears in spite of myself. "And I think that's how Typhoeus got into the camp. I think I _did _summon him, but not intentionally. I'm so sorry".

The campers were silent. The only one who wasn't, of course, was Clarisse. "What are we going to do Chiron? The girl's too dangerous to live here at camp. What if she summons more monsters" She lowered her voice "What if she summons the Titans or Giants back?"

Chiron considered this before speaking. "No camper is worth losing, no matter what the dangers. But I do agree that something must be done".

"But what can we do?" one of the Stolls said. It was Connor, or maybe it was Travis.

"Yeah," the other—Travis, or maybe Connor—said. "We can't just change her birthday".

"But there is something that I can do," I said. I told them about my dream, how I was supposed to prove myself to Ate before I could be accepted by her. "Maybe if she accepts me, she'll help with the situation of my aura".

Chiron had fallen silent. I looked at him, but as usual, I couldn't tell what he was thinking. I looked to the faces of some of the older camp counselors; Percy, Annabeth, the Stolls, Katie. They all held the same expression, like they knew something.

"Chiron," Annabeth stepped up. "Do you think she could be the one?"

Chiron looked at me, then at Annabeth. "Annabeth, I'm not sure".

"It has to be her," Annabeth persisted. "Who else could it be?"

Chiron looked at me once more, then said to the other newer camp counselors; Lacy from Aphrodite, Clovis, Butch, "I think it might be best for you to check on your campers. Lunch will be in three hours".

When they left, the only people left were me, Percy, Annabeth, the Stolls, Leo, Clarrise, Katie, and a few satyrs.

"Well?" Percy said. "Is she?"

"Am I what?" I asked.

Chiron seemed as though he couldn't tell me. Percy started talking for him though. "A month ago, just before you showed up, we noticed a disturbance in the mist".

I nodded as I remembered being told about the magic veil.

"Weird things were starting to happen in the mortal world," Percy continued. "Monsters started to feel more comfortable around mortals, and there were these freak accidents…"

"Freak accidents?" I asked.

"Mortals would be minding their own business, and then something involving magic would cause chaos," Annabeth chimed in. "One day, a mortal was driving in his car, and a hellhound jumped in front of his car, and he died from the impact of hitting it. Yet the hound was unharmed".

"And it's not just magic," Travis said. "Odds have been out of wack in general. And not in a good way".

"But what does that have to do with me?" I asked.

"The counselors that have been here the longest," Annabeth explained. "We've all been having the same dream. In my dream, I was standing in a dark room. I thought I was all alone, except then I saw one other person with me. I couldn't see her face, but I could see her eyes, like big silver drachmas. She would say to me, 'It's a trap. Go, they only want me'. I would protest that I was there to help, but the girl would insist, 'I'm the only one who can fix it. Besides, I need to make my mark'". Annabeth looked at me. "It wasn't until you came that I thought to tell it to Chiron, to find out that other people had been having the same dream".

"Are you suggesting some sort of adventure?" I asked.

"A quest," Annabeth said. She looked at Chiron. "Right?"

Chiron nodded. "I think she may be the one".

"But where will I go?" I asked.

"Arima," Annabeth said.

"Where now?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"It's the place that Typhoeus used to live," Annabeth explained, "Before the Olympians defeated him".

"Oooooh," I said.

Percy raised his hand. "But Arima was located in Syria".

"Yes," Annabeth said.

"So…um…isn't Syria a little far to go?" he asked.

"Yes it is," Annabeth said. I looked at her face and could tell she was trying to be patient with Percy.

Percy wasn't getting it, whatever it was Annabeth was trying to communicate. "Only one quest has sent us around the world, and it was really dangerous, and…oh, wait. Western civilization".

Annabeth nodded.

"Ok, western what?" I asked.

"Western civilization," Annabeth said. "You don't know about that?"

I shook my head.

"Oh, well, over time, the gods moved to the U.S. You know that right?"

I nodded.

"Well, the gods weren't the only think that moved. If they moved, their home, Mount Olympus, had to move too. And also the main entrance to the Underworld, as well as all the other important monuments in mythology".

I nodded again. It made sense. "So where's the new Arima?"

"The Mojave desert," Annabeth said. "Arima is always located in the west, away from the gods and mortals alike. The Mojave Desert is in California, close to Las Vegas. If you go there, you may find out what's been happening with the Luck on earth".

"Well, then," I said, "I guess I had better start packing my bags".

"Wait," Chiron said. "It will be dangerous. Any quest is too dangerous to go alone. You may have two people accompany you" he turned to the rest of the campers "Will anyone go with Jo?"

No one answered. Not even Percy or Annabeth. I looked around, but the room was silent.

"I'll go," I voice said. I looked and saw Grover trotting up.

"Very well," Chiron said. "Anyone else?"

"I'll go," said Leo, standing up and walking over to me. he smiled and said to me, "You didn't really think I'd let you go on a life-threatening quest on your own, did you Chica?"

I rolled my eyes.

"It looks like we have a quest," Chiron said. "You need to speak with the Oracle, Jo. Come back to me when you have".

So I walked out of the Big House, unsure of what the Oracle would hold about my fate.

**So there it is! I'm so happy for spring break this week! I might update another chapter this week because of that.**


	17. The Oracle's Prophecy

**Chapter 17! Enjoy!**

I stood in front of a curtained cave entrance, staring up at the foreboding carved rock. I gulped and raised a trembling fist to tap on the rock. I heard a girlish voice say, "Come in" and I stepped behind the curtain

Inside the cave was a complete parallel to what the outside suggested. It was that of a modern teenage dream; comfy furniture, a huge tv, guitars lounging around, music, which I had somehow not heard from the outside, blasting so loud I couldn't hear myself think, even a snack bar. There was art supplies everywhere, which I thought was a little out of place.

Suddenly the music died enough so that I could hear a girl behind me say, "Who are you?"

I turned and saw a girl that matched the unusual cave. She was tallish, but not quite as tall as you'd think, with an over-sized t-shirt and jeans riddled with paint and marker doodles. But the most striking thing about her was her bright green eyes and mane of bright red hair. She turned the nob on the stereo down more, and walked toward me with a gaze full of curiosity, like the way one might study a demigod, which is to say, like a bomb ready to explode.

"Um…Chiron sent me here," I said. "To see the oracle. Where is it?"

The girl's gaze steadied, and the corners of her lips curved up ever so slightly in amusement. "You mean where is_ she_? Well, you're looking right at her" she held out her hand "I'm Rachel Elizabeth Dare".

"Jo Goodrace," I said, shaking her hand. "And I'll give you the casualty not to have to suffer my middle name".

Rachel chuckled. "Have a seat, please".

I sat, and Rachel sat beside me.

"Chiron sent you for a prophecy, correct?" Rachel said, as if this where a completely normal thing.

"I guess so," I said. Chiron hadn't told me that specifically, but if Rachel spoke about it in such a casual way…

"Ok then," Rachel said. She crossed her legs and put her palms open on her knees. "Give me your hands".

I placed my hands in hers, and then waited. Rachel seemed to be listening for something. After a while she said, "You nervous about your first quest?"

"A little," I admitted.

"It's ok," she said. "Everyone's nervous. I remember when I was first introduced to all this".

"So you're a half-blood too?"

"No, I'm just a mortal who can see through the mist," Rachel smiled. "But that's why I've been given the spirit of Delphi. To give prophecies".

"Oh".

Rachel closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Then she opened them again, but they weren't the bright green they had been. They were full of green light. Rachel opened her mouth, and a green fog slithered out, followed by a snake-like voice. I wanted to scream and run away, but Rachel's grip on my hands was like a vise.

_You will travel to the land without rain,_

_ And fight the army of Luck's bane._

_ A trap set by the unfortunate's foe,_

_ A scar with which can never regrow._

_ The end will stray from what was planned,_

_ And one will perish by a mother's hand._

Rachel collapsed on the couch, and finally let go of my hands. I dew them back frantically, staring down at the girl who had spoken the most dangerous thing in the world to me.

Rachel finally opened her eyes, sat up, and said, "Did—did I speak a prophecy?"

I gulped and nodded.

"Good," Rachel said. "Can you tell me?"

I shook my head. "That was crazy".

Rachel lowered her head. "It was something bad, wasn't it?"

I nodded.

Rachel looked at me, and I saw a somewhat guilty expression. But she smiled and said, "Hey, don't worry. Prophecies often have multiple meanings".

"Yeah," but I wasn't so sure.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

Back at the Big House, I found Chiron, Leo, Grover, and Mr. D sitting at the table on the front porch. When I approached they looked at me expectantly.

"What did the oracle say?" Chiron asked.

I chewed my lip. "She…she said I'd go to the land without rain".

Chiron raised an eyebrow. "And?"

"That's it," I lied.

Chiron obviously wasn't satisfied, but didn't push me. He spoke to Mr. D, "So what do you think? Are they allowed to go?"

Mr. D looked up at me and sniffed. I scowled right back at him. Then he shrugged and said, "Well, I won't try and oppose the future. Go on your little quest, and I hope you have a tragic death. Oops, I mean good fortune".

Before I could charge the man, Leo and Grover dragged me away.

"Better not," Grover whispered.

**So there's chapter 17! Hope ya liked it!**


	18. Good Luck? That's Something I Don't Have

**Chapter 18! **

The next morning I stood at the top of half-blood hill with Leo and Grover, Peleus watching me with shifty eyes. I suspected he didn't really like me, but after the last incident, he dared not get near me. The sun was just peaking its way over the strawberry fields, and the breeze brought their fresh scent to my nose. I hefted my backpack, which consisted of three changes of clothes, enough food for an army, plenty of pranking supplies, nectar and ambrosia—as well as other first aid—and of course my book of Ate. How was I able to fit that in a smallish backpack? I received it the night before…

It started with a dream. I was in the desert, a storm brewing overhead. I thought it was strange to see such a storm in the middle of the desert, but I didn't have time to think on it much. The ominous clouds boiled and churned, not raining, but just seemed to be there for the sole purpose to make the situation more terrifying.

I couldn't see much because of the dark clouds, but what I did I wished I couldn't. before me I saw an army of monsters—every kind. There were hellhounds and telekinies, dragons with every number of heads, gorgons, dracaena, empusa, and so many I couldn't even name. They advanced without much speed, but I knew I couldn't fight them all.

I turned and saw someone else there with me. I couldn't see his face, just his fearful eyes.

"It's a trap," I said. "They only want me".

"No Jo," he protested. "Don't go alone. I'm here to help".

I shook my head. "I'm the only one who can fix it. Besides, I need to make my mark". I was about to head toward the monster army when the boy grabbed my arm.

"Please," he pleaded. "You can't do this alone. You'll die".

"Then they'll have what they want, and leave the rest of the world alone," I said, tears welling in my eyes. I didn't want to die, but if that's what it took to save the world, that's what I would have to do. I removed the boy's hand, and walked toward the army in surrender.

Suddenly the dream changed, and I was in a dark room. I couldn't see anything, not even my hand in front of my face.

"So, you're going to Arima," said a voice. I couldn't see where it came from.

"Yeah," I said. "Where are you?"

"That's not important," the voice said. "You must be very brave to go to that forbidden land. Or just very stupid".

"I'll go with brave," I said.

The voice chuckled. "Well, well. There may be hope for you yet".

"What are you talking about?"

"You seem you're going to need help, so I'll give you a gift".

"A gift?" I said.

"Yes. You'll find it when you wake up. And look in that book of yours".

When I woke up, I looked at the end of my bed to find a backpack. It gleamed with gold thread in the morning sun. Thinking of the dream, I grabbed my book from under my bed and opened it to the first page after the warning. But instead of facts on Ate, it had a letter written on it. It read,

_Dear reader,_

_I'm sure by now you've noticed many things about yourself and the trouble this book and your own aura have put you through. And as a token of my apologies, and a congratulation on your quest, I have given you a gift. The backpack in front of you is enchanted to hold anything you put in it, no matter what size or quantity. _

_ -The Sneaker_

"The Sneaker". There was that name again. Who was it?

"Hey, Chica!" called Leo, waving a hand in front of my face, jolting me back to the present.

"Huh, what?" I said.

"You ready?" he asked. "The van's ready to go".

"Huh? Oh, yeah," I said. I looked back at camp, the rolling green hills, the campers having fun, the lake sparkling. I wondered if I'd ever see it again.

Chiron put a hand on my shoulder. "Jo".

I turned and saw him in his wheelchair, so he came closer to eye-level.

"There is something else you need to do on your quest," he said. "I need you to check on some of the casinos in Las Angeles. There has been some abnormality with the Luck there, and I have a feeling it has something to do with…the situation".

"Ok," I said. "The Mojave desert isn't far from LA".

"Also, when you've figured out what it is that's upsetting Luck, you need to report it to the Olympians".

"You mean…I can go to Mount Olympus?"

"Jo, come on!" Grover called from the van.

"Go now," Chiron said. "I wish you good Luck".

I chuckled. "Good Luck? That's something I don't have".

In the van, no one spoke a word. Grover would bleat nervously every so often, and Leo fiddled with some pipe cleaners and rubber bands, but there was no conversation. Argus, the camp's hundred-eyed body guard, drove us as far as Manhattan, but after that we were on our own, at the mercy of what terrors await us.

**So there it is! Happy Easter everyone!**


	19. The Train Ssstation

**Chapter 19!**

Grover, Leo, and I stood on the streets of Manhattan, the Empire State Building in view. I looked at all the people on the streets, walking, running, even dancing, to work or school or their favorite coffee shop, completely unaware of the havoc that was going on with the Luck in their lives.

"So which way is the Mojave Desert?" I asked.

Grover looked up at the sky, then sniffed the air, then looked amongst the crowd of New York people nervously, but didn't say anything.

"Come on," Leo said. "The train station's this way".

As we walked through the streets, I started to notice something weird.

I was walking alongside Leo and Grover, when some guy ran into me and spilled his coffee all over my shirt.

"Ahh!" I said. The man kept running, as if nothing had just happened. I looked at his retreating figure, then increducely at Leo and Grover.

"That was rude," Grover said.

"Yeah, no kidding," I said, taking the towel offered by Leo, who had somehow grabbed it out of the small pocket of his tool belt. Probably magic.

After a while, just when the coffee had dried from my t-shirt, a car drove by, splashing muddy water all over me. Somehow Leo and Grover had managed to avoid it.

I groaned and took another towel from Leo, wiping my face first.

"Your t-shirt just can't take a break today, can it?" Leo said, laughing.

I grumped and continued to wipe my face. Then I got an idea. I smiled and said, "You think that's' funny, huh? You know what else is funny?"

Leo gave me a confused look.

"It's funny how much I love my friends!" I tackled Leo in a hug, covering him in mud. Leo yelped, trying to pull away, but by the time he did, he was just as dirty as me and laughing harder. Grover stood half laughing, half bleating, nearly knocking his fake feet off.

"Come on Goat Boy," Leo said. "Join the group hug".

Grover shook his head, but couldn't wipe the smile off his face.

Leo and I looked at each other, nodded, and tackled Grover as well, and soon we were all filthy, but laughing even more hysterically than ever.

I calmed down enough to say, "There's the train station. I'll go get tickets".

I walked up to the line for the ticket booth and waited. And waited. And _waited_. "What is the hold up here?" I mumbled.

"I'm sssorry, did you say something to usss?" asked the person in front of me. She turned around and looked me in the eye.

"Oh, no mam," I said. "I was just wondering why this line was moving so slow".

"It's only been five minutes," she said. Her eyes narrowed. "Are you ADHD?"

"Um…maybe just a little," I admitted, even though I was in fact _very _ADHD. Those five minutes had seemed like five hours. It was then in my mind that I realized something. "Wait, did you say _us_?"

"Yesss," the woman said. "Me and my twin sssister". She stepped aside to reveal another woman of exact features. I mean, these two women looked even more like each other than the Stoll brothers. Scary. They both had the same ruby-red hair, same topaz eyes, same almost serpent-like figure, same long slender hands with long, well manicured nails. They even dressed in identical cherry red suits. "I'm Sssilvia, and this is Viola".

"Nice to meet you," I said. "I'm Jo".

"Jo, what an interesssting name," Viola said. The twin sisters even shared the same lisp. "I've never heard of a girl with that name before".

I shrugged.

"Ssso where are you headed, Imp?" Silvia asked.

"Imp?"

"Impatient one," Silvia corrected herself.

"Umm…" Something was not right here.

"Money please," said a voice. I looked ahead of me and saw that I was at the front of the line. The ticket salesman sat behind a glass window with a bored expression.

I pushed past Silvia and Viola and said, "Three tickets to LA please" frantically stuffing the money in the hole in the window. I snatched up the tickets and hurried away from the creepy twins. I had just thought I lost them when I felt a vise-like hand grip my shoulder. I turned and saw the twins, smiling in a not-so friendly way. They smiled, flicking their forked tongues. Wait, _forked_?!

"My dear young lady," they said in unison. "Were you never told it isss rude to cut in line?" then they began to change. Their legs morphed together, until they were attached together, like a crude joke of Siamese twins. Their arms disappeared. Their skin began to take on a greenish color, forming scales. Finally they blinked their eyes, which now had the split pupils of a serpent.

Yes, Silvia and Viola had turned into a two headed snake, with one head at each end. Silvia, who I could only distinguish from Viola because she had slightly more vicious eyes, shot out, and I ducked, missing her fangs by an inch.

I unsheathed my dagger, but I didn't really know how it could be very useful against the viper. Such a small weapon didn't give me much length to strike without getting too close to the monster.

Mortals screamed and fled, not really helping the situation. Viola struck, but this time I stabbed with my blade. Viola screamed in agony. Blood that steamed with acid dripped onto the sidewalk.

Suddenly I heard a flute-like sound, and Grover and Leo were beside me.

"Geez Imp," Leo said. "Can we leave you for one minute without you getting into trouble?"

Viola and Silvia hissed and shot out at Leo. Fortunately Leo ducked, and Silvia's fangs sank into the concrete, taking a huge chunk out. She spit it out and roared in rage.

"You may have some friends," she said, "But you still can't run away from your fate".

"Please," I said. "Running away from fate is my favorite thing to do!" filled with newfound strength, I did something only an impulsive ADHD kid would do. I charged the two-headed snake. I stabbed with my dagger, Ataxies, and Silvia screamed as she was hit. What I did was brave, but I wasn't prepared for what happened next. Viola, whom I didn't even notice was behind me, sank her fangs into my arm, just above the elbow. I yowled in pain and fell to the ground, clutching my bleeding wound.

"JO!" I heard Leo shout, but his voice sounded watery. My vision blurred, and I couldn't hear anything but the roar of blood. Breathing became harder, my limbs lost all feeling, except for the snake bite. That hurt more than anything. It burned and ached and throbbed, making it almost impossible to think about anything else.

I managed to open my eyes, and I saw Grover knelt over me. He was inspecting the snake bite.

"Jo," he said when he noticed I was still conscious. "Just keep your eyes open. I'll try and put a nature blessing on you to delay the poison from spreading further".

"The snake," I rasped. "What about—" suddenly I heard a shout, and I tilted my head to see Leo fighting the two-headed snake with a sledge hammer. He dodged and smashed, but he obviously couldn't win. A hammer wasn't enough to kill it. He would get tired soon.

Then something really weird happened. Leo dropped his hammer, but it was purposefully, like he thought he could fight the snake with his bare hands. Then, before my eyes, his hand caught fire. He reached in his tool belt and retrieved a flask of oil. He threw it at Silvia and Viola and it shattered all over them. Then he shot a stream of white hot flames at them, and they writhed in pain. I watched in amazed shock as they shriveled and turned to ash.

Leo came rushing over, extinguishing the fire with a mere flick of a wrist. "Jo, are you all right?"

I wanted to say, "No, not particularly, after being bitten by a two-headed poisonous snake" but the poison, or perhaps the shock of what had just happened, hindered my ability to speak.

Suddenly I heard a train whistle, and Grover said, "We need to get on the train. We'll figure out what to do from there".

"Ok," Leo picked me up, for the poison had paralyzed me, and carried me to the train, where he set me down in a seat. Thankfully the train car was empty, what with the mortals all leaving from the havoc. I lay down on the seat, shivering and just barely breathing, feeling like I was about to die.


	20. My Hopelessly Unlucky Being

All I could remember was the pain. Hot, acidy, searing away at the very fibers of my being. It was more than I could bear. The world was dark, and I felt like I was floating in lava. I couldn't move, couldn't do anything about the pain. Then I heard a voice, faint in the vast darkness. "Jo," it said. "Jo". It sounded concerned. I wondered why. And who had it come from? The voice sounded awfully familiar, and for some reason I wanted very much to call out for it, but I couldn't speak. The voice became louder, but still watery, like it was coming from someone who was screaming underwater. I slowly started to shift around, the pain melting, the voice getting stronger.

"Jo," said the voice. "Jo".

"Wha—wha?" I said, opening my eyes. I lay on the seat of a train car, though the whole car was empty. I groggily sat up and looked around. Outside the windows, the world zoomed past at a speed that made my poisoned self nauseas.

"Jo, thank the gods you're ok," said the voice I had heard in my dream. I looked in the seat in front of me and saw Leo, his curly hair in a tangle and dark circles under his eyes.

"What—what happened?" I asked, rubbing my eyes. Then I winced as I felt a shot of pain in my arm. I looked and saw the upper part of my arm wrapped in a thick bandage.

"We were attacked," said Grover, who sat next to Leo.

"Oh, yeah," I said, remembering.

"You were bitten, and Grover used his nature magic to save your life," Leo said.

Grover's ears turned pink. "It was nothing" then his tone turned more serious. "But I'm still worried about _what_ bit you Jo. Do you realize what that was?"

"It was a two-headed snake, " I said, "but I'm assuming you mean it's relation to mythology—I mean, history". I still had a tough time grasping that all the stories that had been drilled into my head as myths were real, and a part of history.

Grover nodded. "It was the Amphisbaena. A two-headed snake that feeds off the corpses of young heroes. It was originally born from the gorgon, Medusa's, blood when Perseus was riding through the Libyan Desert with her severed head".

My stomach did a flip flop. "Gross".

"But it's only supposed to live in the desert," Grover pondered. "Why was it all the way in New York? What's more is that it usually only feeds on flesh that's already been killed, like a scavenger. It never attacks living heroes like that".

"Ok, that's really gross," I said, clutching my stomach.

"What I want to know," Leo said, "is why we had a monster attack so soon. It usually takes a few days for the monsters to pick up on our scent".

I bit my lip. "Oops".

Leo and Grover looked at me.

"Why did you say oops?" Grover asked. "It's not like it's your fault the monster attacked".

"Actually," I said, "I think it might be. Do you remember how I kept having all these unfortunate events before the attack? That's because of my aura, or something like that".

"So are you're saying your hopelessly unlucky being sent the monster," Leo said.

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, sort of".

Grover furrowed his eye brows and said, "So, if your aura attracts misfortune, we'll have to deal with things like that the _whole way_?"

I nodded sheepishly.

Grover and Leo groaned.

"How do you live with life beating you up all the time?" Leo asked.

I chuckled. "You get used to it after a while".

The train ride had, for the most part, a blithe spirit after that. I promoted that. After learning that we'd be having bad Luck following us for the quest, Leo and Grover had seemed to have wet blankets on their dispositions. But I did the best I could to lighten the mood and soon we were all having a normal teenage conversation, laughing and making a general joyous ruckus. Because, when you've been living a life that's always beating you down, you learn to just get right back up again. I mean, what more can you do?


	21. Who's the Freak?

I sat huddled in a corner. I couldn't tell where I was. It was pitch dark, with no light, but somehow I could still see myself. I pulled my knees up to my chest, my teeth clattering. It was so cold, I wondered if I would ever be warm again. I breathed a forced gasp, and I could see my breath. The suppressing darkness felt as if it were pressing on my chest with the weight of an elephant. It made it hard to breathe, and I struggled to keep my lungs working.

Suddenly I heard a harsh woman's voice breach the darkness. "Soon," said the voice.

"What?" I croaked.

"Soon," it chanted again. "Soon we will have you in our clutches. Soon we will have our revenge".

"Revenge?" I rasped. "What did I do to you?"

The voice chuckled. "Poor little hero. Your mother would be so proud of your efforts. Too bad you won't live to see her again".

"What are you talking about?"

The voice laughed. "Stupid little hero. So ignorant. We'll be happy when you're finally gone".

"I don't understand. What did I do?"

"Well it's not so much what you did as who you are".

"What?"

"Hmmm….well, I've had my fun. It's time for you to wake up now". Suddenly I heard a horrible banshee-like scream. I covered my ears, but that did nothing to help. The darkness intensified, as if it couldn't get worse. I gasped, but couldn't breathe. My lungs burned.

My eyes shot open, I gasped harshly, and I sat bolt upright. I sat gasping a little while, my eyes darting around. Then my breathing slowed. Just a dream.

It was night on the train car, the full moon flooding a beam of silvery light down through the train. All was calm and quiet, quite contrary to my dream.

"You ok Chica?" said a voice. I turned and saw Leo awake, sitting with his arms crossed in the seat behind me.

"You're awake," I said.

"I couldn't sleep," he admitted. "I volunteered to take first watch".

"But we're the only ones on this train," I said. "At least I'm pretty sure we are".

Leo shrugged. "Can't be too careful".

I was silent for a few moments. Then I asked something that had been nagging at the back of my mind. "Leo? What did you do?"

"What?"

"At the train station," I said. "You were fighting the Amphisbaena, and then you…you…"

"Oh," Leo looked down at his lap. His fingers fiddled with a screw and a washer, as if even they wanted to do anything but indulge in this conversation now. "Look Jo, I was going to tell you—"

"You summoned fire with your hand," I said. "How did you do that? And why didn't you tell me before?"

Leo bit his lip, but didn't look me in the eye. "When I was born, I was given a gift from Hephaestus. A gift that hadn't been given in three hundred and fifty years".

"Hephaestus is the god of blacksmiths," I said, "but he's also the god of fire. Is that the gift he gave you?"

Leo nodded. "I didn't tell you before because…well…I thought you might think I was a freak or something".

I looked at the guy in disbelief. I looked in his eyes and saw, behind the guise of smiles and humor, years of twisted rage, unfathomable heartbreak, unforgettable death. And what was scary was I looked at him, and I saw myself. I blinked back the thoughts though and said, "Leo, what you did was…crazy, and I was a little shocked".

Leo finally looked me in the eye.

I managed a dry half-smile. "I was born with the ability to change someone's fortune for the worse with just my presence. Bad Luck has shadowed over me and affected my life in ways that I didn't even understand until a few days ago. Heck, I was born on Friday the thirteenth. Several people agree that I'm too dangerous to merely be at camp for fear of total destruction. If anyone's the freak, it's me".

Leo smiled that impish grin that made me jealous, and laughed.

"Besides," I said, grinning "I'm your friend. Just because you're not like everybody else, doesn't mean I won't still be your friend".

Leo stopped laughing and sighed. He looked out the window, as if wondering what lie ahead of us on our quest. I looked up at the big silvery moon, and if I had been able to look at my face at that moment, I would have noticed that my eyes looked very much like it. Big, silver, full of wonder and hope.

I heard Leo stifle a vengeful yawn, and I offered to take second watch. He lay down on the seat and nodded off without much complaint. I continued to look at the moon. There was only one difference between my eyes and the moon. The moon was full of mystery and innocence. Since my coming to Camp Half-Blood, I had seen so much, and I knew the dangers.


	22. We Get a Vertically Challenged Butt kick

The next day we had to get off the train because our tickets only got us as far as St. Louis. Leo, Grover and I stood staring up at the big city, the famous arch in the distance.

"Wow," Leo breathed. "Imagine the engineering that went into that thing".

"Yes, very interesting. Can we move on now?" Grover shifted from one fake foot to the other nervously, as if remembering bad times from that arch.

"Well we're not here to admire arches," I said. "We're here only to be passing through. Come on". I had to drag Leo away by the sleeve.

"Why can't we see it?" Leo asked.

I looked at him. He was giving me this misty eyed little kid pout, like a cross between a heartbroken toddler and a poor lost puppy. I rolled my eyes and sighed. "Fine. But only for a minute".

"Yay!" he said, and started running towards the arch. "Muy Bien!"

I looked at Grover, who shrugged. I rolled my eyes again and sprinted after Leo.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

"Can you believe it?" Leo asked, looking over his Spanish copy of the itinerary for the St. Louis arch. "The arch is made of nine hundred tons of stainless steel! That's seventeen thousand, two hundred and forty six tons in weight!"

"Amazing," I said, trying to formulate the alphabet soup that was the English version of the itinerary. I finally gave up and stuffed the brochure in the back pocket of my jean shorts. We were near the elevator to go up to the top of the arch.

Grover was looking around nervously, sniffing the air and bleating.

I leaned in and whispered, "Smell any monsters?"

Grover jumped, startled. Then he said, "Not yet, but I still have a bad feeling about this".

"Just keep your nose open," I said understandingly. "But try to enjoy it, ok? It's not every day you get to go cross-country".

Grover snorted but said nothing.

I had to admit I was impressed by the famous arch. I couldn't believe that someone could make something so big and grand. It also amused me how elated Leo was. He acted like a little kid on Christmas; wide eyes and the biggest grin I had ever seen on his face. His eyes sparkled with a light that reminded me of a five year old at Disney world.

We boarded the elevator to ride up to the top of the arch, Grover seeming even more nervous, Leo jumping up and down, me trying my hardest not to whip out my dagger and prod at the many humans that were all crammed in the tiny elevator to give me some personal space. When we finally reached the top my jaw dropped. "Woah".

Before me, out of the floor-to-ceiling window, lay the incredible landscape of St. Louis. Large buildings and streets, ant-sized people, and cars that looked like toy Hot Wheels. All with a glittering river flowing through it. It was beautiful.

"Wow," Leo breathed, leaning against the glass. He seemed at a loss for words, for once.

"Kid," said a voice. A security guard tapped Leo's shoulder, and Leo broke away from the window. "No touching the glass". She had a voice of ice.

"Oh, sorry," Leo said, backing away a few steps. "It's just…wow, that's a view".

"Yeah, yeah," she said passively, as if she saw it every day. "Just stay out of trouble. Not too long ago some stupid kid managed to blow a hole in the floor, fell though".

My eyes widened. "What happened to him?"

The guard shrugged. "Died probably". She walked on, telling more people not to touch her precious glass window.

"Why are you scowling like that?" Leo asked.

"Hm? Oh, I just don't see how touching the glass—" I streaked my hand across the window for emphasis, leaving a mark "has anything to do with blowing a hole through the floor and falling to our deaths".

Leo raised an eyebrow but laughed anyway.

"Crazy though huh?" I asked. "You think she was telling the truth about that kid?"

"Well one can never know," Grover said sarcastically, then leaned in and whispered something in my ear.

My eyes widened. "No way. Did he?"

Grover nodded.

I laughed. "Man, he can't go anywhere without making some huge fiasco, can he?"

Grover and Leo joined in laughing, and soon we were all guffawing all the way down the elevator back to ground level.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

On the way out the door, Leo wanted to stop in the gift shop.

"Leo, you do know that we need to save our money for emergencies," I said.

"I just want to have a look around," he said. "Maybe find a t-shirt or something".

"You forgot to pack an extra shirt, didn't you," I said.

Leo smiled sheepishly.

I hated gift shops. They were all full of cliché merchandise that took away from the awesomeness of the main attraction. I waded through mobs of people with cheesy t-shirts, coffee mugs, and fish tank decorations. While Leo and Grover were looking at all the "cool stuff" I decided to have a little fun. I looked around for my victim, when I spotted two strange men in black suits. They looked impeccable in their crisp suits and fedoras and sunglasses. But the oddest thing about them was their enormous size thirty feet. They all stood whispering in a corner, probably talking about business matters, but why in a gift shop I had no idea. I looked on the shelf I was hiding behind and saw a line of snow globes, the St. Louis arch in winter I suppose. _Snow globes…_

I knelt and unzipped my enchanted backpack. I got out the materials I needed and set to work.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

I stood just out of eye range of the strange huge footed men. There were about half a dozen of them, all huddled in a circle. I chuckled. _This is gonna be good…_

I braced myself and pulled the rope. An avalanche of flour rained down on the men, sending the whole tiny, overcrowded gift shop up in a white fog. I let loose and laughed hysterically, pulling out a water gun and squirted it at what I thought was the group of strange men, though it was too cloudy to be sure. When the smoke cleared, I stuffed my water gun back in my backpack so no one could pin it on me. I looked at my victory. The men in now filthy suits were spluttering, trying to comprehend what had just happened. I stood there laughing.

"You," said one of the men. He pointed a finger at me and I stopped laughing. The look in his eyes was beyond mad. It was pure _evil_. "You nasty little pixie. Come here, so we may kill you for disturbing our peace!"

I gulped and ran. I found Grover and Leo with flour dust all over them.

"Jo!" Leo scolded. "Do the words 'low profile' enter your mind?"

"Sorry?" I said sheepishly. "But now's not the time to worry about that".

"Roar!" shouted someone behind me.

"Jo," Grover said, sniffing the air. He sneezed and said, "Did you anger a monster?"

"Um," I said, biting my lip, "Maybe?"

"Garrrr!" a huge-footed man stepped out of the white fog. He was followed by the rest, who glowered down at the trio with hatred. "Demigods," said the first with distaste. "You thought you could prank the skaipods and get away with it, did you?"

"The what now?" I said.

The men growled. Then things got weird, as they often do in the magical world. The men started shrinking until they were only three and a half feet tall. They tore off one of their legs, and I was horrified until I realized it was synthetic. If possible, the one real foot they each had grew even bigger, to the length of two skateboards.

"They're—they're—" I stammered.

"Haha, yes. You remember us little prankster," said the first dwarf. "We are the skaipods, usually peaceful dwarfs of the country. But now you have disturbed us, and you will pay! I am Sefo, leader of my brothers, and your captor!"

"Um, I'm not sure what you mean by _remember_ because I've never heard of you—wait, I take that back. I think I remember Annabeth saying something about vertically challenged one-footed people, but…"

"Gah! Enough with your nonsense talk, mischievous one! We will lock you and your friends in our cages for all eternity!" I was about to do something, but all of the sudden the dwarf jumped and kicked me square in the face. I let out an _oof_ and I blacked out.

**So there's chapter 22! Just so ya know, muy bien means very well.**


	23. I Meet Talia, She Gives Leo a Nickname

I woke up with a gasp. I was disoriented, and my head hurt. My nose felt like it was about to fall off, and I looked down at my shirt and saw dried blood. I gazed around me. I was in a dark room, with only a spotlight glaring down on me. I shifted in my chair, and I realized my hands were tied behind my back. Where was I?

"Hello?" I called out. My voice echoed off the walls.

"Chica," said a voice I immediately recognized as Leo's. I couldn't move my head to see him, because he was right behind me, in a chair of his own, his own hands bound in rope. We sat back to back, each staring out into one's own darkness.

"Leo," I said, staring ahead. "Where are we?"

"I don't know," he said. "But I don't think we're guests, wherever we are. Where's Grover?"

"I dunno".

We sat in deafening silence for a while. Then I said, "I'm sorry".

"For what?" Leo sounded surprised.

"I don't know," I said. "For playing that prank, for hating gift shops" I looked down at the floor "For convincing you to go on this quest in the first place".

"Jo," Leo said "You didn't convince me to go on this quest. I came along of my own free will".

"But I should have tried to persuade you not to," I said, feeling tears sting my eyes. "I knew it would end badly. Everything ends badly for me" by now the tears were streaking down my cheeks "I should never have let you come and share my fate".

"Jo, what are you talking about?" Leo asked. I felt his fingers brush mine. "What do you mean, things _always_ end badly for you?"

My tears were flowing heavily now, but I managed to speak. All of the sudden I blurted out my whole life story; my birth, my step-mom, my dad and his death, how even my own real mother, Ate, was ashamed of me. I had never told anyone everything before, but it felt good to finally get it out.

Leo listened intently, especially about the part of my dad.

"When I was ten," I said, just barely managing not to choke "my dad died in a car crash".

"I'm so sorry," Leo said in a voice no bigger than a whisper.

I shook my head. "No, you don't understand. My dad, the reason he died, it's my fault".

"Jo, it's not your—"

"Just listen to me". I gulped and took a deep breath. "That day was just like every other day..."

Jo woke up that morning with a smile on her face. She stretched, yawned, and jumped out of bed joyfully. She looked in the mirror. Her wild mane of black hair was a mess, but it was always like that. She didn't care much. The alarm clock on her desk went off, and she slapped it, pulled on a t-shirt and jeans, and raced out of the room and slid down the hand rail, flying down two or three stories and making little sounds like airplanes. Jo was an unusual kid, even for a ten year old, but she didn't care.

When she reached the bottom, she was greeted by the sour face of a pretty blonde. The woman had icy blue eyes and flawless skin. "Jo," Holly Goodrace scolded, "What have I told you about sliding down the hand rail?"

"To not to," Jo said, mimicking the tone of voice Holly had used.

Holly rolled her eyes. Then they moved on to Jo's clothes. "Jo, what are you wearing? And your hair looks like a lion just got caught in a tornado". Holly whipped out a hair brush and, with much protest from the ten-year-old, brushed the rat's nest down so it looked decent. "Now go and change our clothes. No daughter of mine is going to school with a stained t-shirt and beat up jeans".

Jo stuck out her tongue. "You're not my mom! And you're not the boss of me! besides, I like this shirt". It was a souvenir from the Grand Canyon Jo's dad had bought her while they were on vacation, back before Holly.

Holly looked about to say something, but just then, Jo's dad, Aaron Goodrace walked into the room. "Well if it isn't my two favorite girls," he said, a smile spread wide on his face.

"Dad!" Jo said, running over and hugging him. Aaron dropped down to his knees and hugged the girl back.

They broke apart and Jo whispered in her father's ear, "I made something for you".

"Did you now?" he asked.

Jo smiled and reached in her pocket. She pulled out a small bracelet made of yarn and beads. It was misshapen and lumpy, but Aaron picked it up and tied it around his wrist, beaming proudly like it was the greatest piece of art in the world.

"It's for good luck," Jo said.

"Ah, I see," her father ruffled her hair. "And good luck I'll need. For my interview". Aaron Goodrace was supposed to have an interview for a job promotion that day.

Mr. Goodrace gave his daughter a kiss on the cheek, his wife a kiss, and he left.

"I didn't know that that was the last time I was going to see him," I said. "That night, after school, Holly got a phone call saying that he had died in a car crash on the way back from work. He had even gotten the promotion too, but he never got to fulfill it".

"I don't get it," Leo said. "How is it your fault?"

"The bracelet I gave him," I said in a shaky voice. "I never realized until after I was claimed the connection…Leo, that bracelet wasn't a good luck charm. I was a bad Luck charm. It killed him".

Leo sat in stunned silence. Then he said, "Jo, it wasn't your fault. You didn't know—"

"I didn't know, yes, but it killed him nonetheless". I shook my head. "Oh, what's the use? It's not like you'd understand having your parent die because of you anyway".

"Actually," Leo said, "I know exactly what you mean".

I raised my eyebrows.

"When I was eight," Leo said quietly "My mother died".

"Oh," I said in a shameful whisper.

Leo told me the story of his mother, of how she had died from an uncontrolled fire that Leo had caused in a workshop. He told me about Gaea, and how she was the one who had visited him and caused him to lose control. He told me about Tia Callida, who had actually turned out to be Hera, his syco babysitter. But he also told me about the good times with his mom. How she loves him, how she called him _mijo_, how he always spent his free time with her in her workshop. It was sweet, and I wished his mom was there so that I could have met her. I had never expected a guy to just spill his guts like that, especially Leo, who seemed like the world was his big joke box. For a while we just sat there, ruminating our dead parents, and despite the fact that that we were tied up in a dark room, I would remember that day as one of the best. I guess it was that for years I had had to carry the weight of it, and I just needed to tell it to someone, and it was nice to finally find someone who understood.

When all was said, and silence once more filled the air, I heard something. "Leo, someone's coming". I heard footsteps.

A big door was opened, flooding the dork room with light, and a short, stout figure walked into the room. I recognized it as Sefo. Behind him was Grover, bound in rope at the wrists.

"Grover!" I said in relief. "Where were you?"

"Be quiet Imp!" Sefo roared, a loud and sonorous sound for such a small package. "He was being questioned. Now it is the fiery one's turn". Sefo walked—well, hopped—to Leo and unbound his wrists. While he did so, I caught Leo's gaze, and he winked mischievously at me, making me grit my teeth. Why was he so good at making the mischievous looks? That was my expertise. But when he winked, I understood what he meant.

Sefo growled at Leo, making him back away a step, even though Sefo was half the size of him. I waited one second, two, three…

"NOW!" Leo yelled, and socked Sefo in the nose. Sefo, stunned temporarily, hunched over in agony. When he recovered, I leaned in my chair with all my might, knocking myself over and tripping the skaipod. He lie, unconscious, beside me.

Leo knelt and picked up my chair, untying the rope and helping me up.

"Thanks," I said.

"Don't mention it".

"Hey, I'm still here," came Grover's voice. Leo and I ran over to him at the entrance. I unknotted the rope around his wrists.

"How do we get out of here?" Leo asked.

"I don't know," I said. "Do you remember a way out when you were out there Grover?"

Grover thought hard, then nodded. "Follow me".

We ran out of the room, and what I saw was frightening. We seemed to be underground—I could tell because Grover had said so; he can smell it—and all around me, in the dim flickering lights, were cages. And in those cages were animals of every kind, and more. Everything from dogs and cats to tigers and bears (oh my!) to unicorns and hydras. They all looked sad and underfed, and I was horrified at the sight of it all. I couldn't even help but be sympathetic for the monsters, who looked at me with sad, but hopeful eyes as if to say, _I'm so hungry. Are you food?_

"Oh my gods," Grover said, choked. "What are they all doing here?"

"Hey guys," Leo said. "Look".

He was pointing to the wal. We looked and, after a few minutes to get my dyslexia out of the way of interpreting it, I read a sign that said, _Skaipod's Animal Asylum. We catch them for your zoo, so you don't have to!_ I couldn't believe it. Was it even legal to hunt monsters for the zoo? I thought not. And they had the nerve to use such a cliché motto! Why, it made me wanna…wanna…

_Hey_!

I stopped my thoughts.

_Hey you!_

I looked around. Had I really hard that?

_I said, HEY YOU!_

I turned a full circle. Where was that voice coming from? It sounded musical, like bells. "Hello?"

_Over here,_ said the voice.

"Jo?" Leo asked. "Who are you talking to?"

"Where?" I asked, ignoring Leo.

_Look at the flashing light, dummy_, it said at out of the corner of my eye I saw a faint flash, like a fire fly. I whirled around and saw a little light in a little cage. I walked over to it.

"Hello?" I asked.

_Would you get me out of here, you monkey-brained muse?_ The little light chimed. I looked closer and realized it was not a light but a tiny person enveloped in light. She tugged on the toothpick-like bars of her cage with her wee little hands.

"Wow," I said. "What are you?"

_What kind of a question is that?_ she said. _Help me, you dodo-headed milk worm!_

"Um, ok," I said, taken aback by the little fairy's language. I picked up the cage and snapped off the door. The little creature flew out and around the room merrily, singing with joy. _Free at last! Free at last!_

"Jo, what did you do?" said Leo, whom I had forgotten all about.

_Why she freed me, hapless log-brain_, said the little person. She floated down to me, landing on a box at eye level._ To whom is the name of the girl I am forever in debt?_

"My name is Jo," I said.

The little person laughed a musical giggle. _What an odd name._

"Oh yeah," I said. "What your name?"

"Wait," Leo said. "Jo, are you communicating with that thing?"

The girl sniffed sharply, crossing her arms. _I am not a thing, thank you very much._

"Can't you understand her?" I asked, ignoring her comment.

Leo shook his head. "All I can hear is bells. What is she anyway?"

"A pixie," Grover piped up. "I didn't think they existed".

_Oh, you'll pay for that, goat boy,_ the pixie said, and I had to hold her two little wings back before she could do anything to Grover.

"So," I said, turning my attention to her, "What's your name?"

The pixie turned to me and said proudly, _Taliabingfernolepippernia._

I raised my eyebrows. "Ok, um Taliabing—tal—pippernia—um, I'll just call you Talia".

Talia didn't seem too pleased with that, but didn't object to it much.

"So how come only I can understand you?" I asked.

Talia shrugged. _How should I know, Horse Breath?_

"Oh," Grover said, realization dawning on his face. "Pixies are creatures of mischief. That's probably why".

"Yeah," I said, catching on. "It's because of my mother Ate—"

_Wait,_ Talia said. _Your mom is Ate?_

I nodded.

_ Oh my sparkle covered wings!_ She said, and knelt down on one knee in the air._ Praises be to your mother, princess of mischief. Please, let me serve you._

"Um…" I said. "Sure. We can use all the help we can get".

Talia brightened at this—literally.

"Can we get going?" Leo asked. "We're kind of on a time crunch here".

Talia, as if noticing for the first time that Leo was there, zipped over to him and examined him, inches from his face. _Who's this guy? He smells like fire._ She laughed._ I think I'll call you Twinkle Toes._

"Um, his name is Leo," I said, but couldn't help but laugh. "And he's right, we need to get moving".

_As you wish, fellow prankster_, Talia said, and we all raced in the direction Grover thought was the exit.


	24. Escape From the One-Footed Men

_So where are you guys from?_ Talia asked as we raced along. _How'd you get tangled with the monopods?_

"I thought they were called skaipods," I said.

_Same thing. Their called by both names. Monopod is just an English translation of the Greek 'skaipod'._

"We're from…" I thought for a moment "We came from a camp in Long Island".

_Camp Half-blood?_

"You've heard of it?"

Everyone's _heard of Camp Half-blood_, Talia said, rolling her wee little eyes.

"We're on a quest," I explained. "To find Arima".

Talia's face, which was already naturally pale, turned ghost white. _You can't be serious. That place is crazy._

Leo interrupted me. "What is she saying?"

"Oh," I said, "Right. Sorry. I keep forgetting you can't understand her. She's wondering about the quest".

"Oh. Well Talia, if you haven't noticed for yourself, the Luck in the world has been acting weird recently. And some of our campers have been having dreams of a quest in which Jo somehow is connected with".

_And what does that have to do with Arima, Twinkle Toes?_

"What'd she say?" Leo asked me.

"Recently I was involved in an attack," I said, ignoring Leo. "One of the monsters from Arima came to camp, because my presence brought it there. We figure whatever is messing with the Luck on earth has something to do with it".

_But do you have any idea what lives there?_ Talia asked. _You'd have to be nuts to go there!_

"Well, besides," I said, "I've had warnings from my mother that I won't be accepted by her until I prove myself to her" I lowered my head "She's ashamed of me".

Talia's expression softened a little. _I'm sure she's not ashamed of you. You're her only daughter. She probably doesn't want you to prove yourself to _her_. She wants you to prove yourself to _you.

I was moved by Talia's little speech, even if it didn't really make any sense.

"We're here!" Grover shouted. I stopped running and looked ahead of us, then up. Above us was a trap door. It was six feet away, just out of reach for us.

"Well, now what do we do?" I asked, exasperated.

_I can fly up,_ Talia said. _Duh._ She flew up and pulled on the handle. But the rusted iron was too heavy for the pixie to open. She pulled and pushed, muttering words that I was glad no one else could interpret.

Finally Leo said, "Talia. It's no use—"

_Don't tell me what's no use, Magic Belt Boy_, Talia said.

"What'd she say Jo?"

I chuckled and told him.

Leo looked offended. "Magic Belt Boy?"

"Guys. Focus," Grover said.

"Right. I've got a plan".

I took a step back. "I hate your plans Valdez".

"What? What's wrong with my plans?"

"Other than the fact that you don't think them through?"

"Ah, thinking's overrated," Leo said. "Trust me".

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

"Valdez, you are going to pay big time for this," I strained, trying to hold on.

"Just a few more inches…" Leo said, reaching up to the door handle with all his might. He sat on my shoulders, and I sat on Grover's. I strained and grunted, trying to hold Leo's weight while also stretching up as far as I could.

"Geez Leo," I said. "You need to lay off the junk food".

"And what's wrong with Little Debbies and Cheetos?"

"I don't see what _you're_ complaining about," Grover grumbled. He staggered under the weight of two people. "I feel like Atlas".

"Gee, I feel great now," I mumbled.

_You guys look ridiculous_, Talia laughed. _I haven't seen anything this funny since the time the Minitor got stuck in a prom dress._

"Talia," I gritted my teeth. "If you don't shut your jingle right now, I'll find a can of bug spray and a fly swatter when we get out of here".

_Yikes!_ Talia flew away and hid behind a box.

"Jo," Leo said. "Stretch up just a few more inches". Leo's hand was only a centimeter away from the handle of the trap door.

"I can't. I'm stretched out like taffy as it is".

Leo groaned and said, "Then I'll have to stretch out". He moved his foot up and planted it on my head.

"Hey!" I protested.

"Just a few more seconds…" Leo was now standing on top of my head. I heard a _creak!_ And Leo whooped as the trap door finally came open. Leo climbed up and out. After a few moment's pause, a rope came down, and Grover and I climbed out, followed by Talia, who zipped through the air, making joyous bell sounds of freedom.

I looked around and what I saw made me gasp. It was a complete parallel to the underground Animal Asylum. We were in the middle of a green field, the wind rippling the tall grass and colorful wild flowers. The sky was a brilliant blue, with hardly any clouds at all. Grover, Leo and I stood in absolute awe for a while, taking in the serene peace.

A voice that resonated through the earth broke the silence. "Hey! They've escaped!"

I looked in the direction the voice had come from. A Skaipod was hopping toward us, stirring his bretheren. They lay dozing in the grass, their huge foot high in the air, shielding the rest of their bodies from the sun. I gulped, grabbed the hands of Leo and Grover, and ran as fast as I could.

"Where are we?!" I yelled.

"I don't know," Leo yelled back.

"Talia! Do you know where we are?"

_How should I know Dumbo? I was locked in that cage underground for five years._

"Woah. Really?"

"Guys," Grover said "Not really a time for conversation!"

We ran blindly through the bliss fields. Usually when people think of people running through fields, they think of them frolicking along, singing. But we looked more like reckless marathoners with zero experience running from some horrible monster. In between bursts of terrified screams, it crossed my mind that it might be weird that I was so scared of little one-legged people.

I dared a peak behind me. A dozen or so monopods (I had decided that that was easier to say) were chasing us, hefting wooden clubs and spears. They only had one foot, but there was nothing wrong with their speed. They were gaining fast, especially since my legs were starting to weaken.

"This way!" Grover yelled, veering left. I followed him, and Leo followed me.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"You'll see," he said, then almost to himself "Just a little farther…"

Leo and I exchanged glances.

"Grover!" I said after a while of running. "Where are we—AHH!" I screamed as I was suddenly whisked away, swallowed by the earth. I was sliding down some sort of cruel joke of an amusement park water slide—minus the water and add complete darkness. Then al of the sudden it was over and I was standing in a dark cavern of sorts. I couldn't see, and I jumped when I felt something on my face. I reached up and pulled it, and light filled the cavern somewhat. I looked up and saw a small lightbulb dangling from a cord.

I looked around and saw what looked like a small demigod hideout. There were sleeping bags, food, water, a battery-operated radio, and even some demigod pleasantries like weapons, nectar and ambrosia.

Suddenly Grover came sliding in through the entrance, followed by Leo and a laughing Talia.

"Jo, there you are," Leo said, rubbing his head.

"I told you not to worry," Grover said.

Talia let out another burst of musical guffaws. _You should have seen Leo when you disappeared. He thought you died._

"What'd she say?" Leo asked.

I told him.

Leo crossed his arms. "No I didn't".

_Yes you did,_ she chimed._ You were hysterical. 'Oh no, my poor Jo! I'll never see her again!' It was pathetic._

I raised an eyebrow. "Leo, she says—"

"I really don't want to know," Leo said, shooting a look at Talia.

I rolled my eyes, then turned my attention to the cavern. "Grover, how did you find this place?"

Grover looked around, as if remembering good times. "When Annabeth was little, about seven years old, I was her protector, along with Thalia, a daughter of Zues, and Luke, a son of Hermes. We were on the run for a long time, and along the way we made several safe places like this one. At any rate, I know exactly where we are now".

"That's amazing," I said. "So where are we?"

"California".

"That's great! That means we're close to our destination".

"Yeah, but we need to make a stop".

"Where? Why?"

Grover bit his lip. "I had a dream recently. I have a feeling we're going to need a lot of help soon".

I furrowed my eyebrows. "What does that have to do with…"

"Wait," Leo said. "You don't mean…"

Grover nodded. "I do".

Leo's expression got really excited all of the sudden. "Well let's go then!" he headed back towards the entrance.

"Wait," Grover said. "Let's wait till morning. Just to make sure the skaipods are gone. And we need to stock up on supplies".

"Oh. Ok". Leo understood, but seemed a little disappointed.

As we grabbed the sleeping bags and settled in for the night, I happily fell into a deep, blissfully dreamless sleep, though I wondered where in the world we had to stop next.


	25. The First Test

I woke up in the middle of the night. I don't know why. I had been sleeping peacefully. But once I woke up, I couldn't go back to sleep.

I sat up and lit a lantern beside me. I rubbed my eyes and looked at the sleeping forms of Grover and Leo. I felt Talia dozing in my hair. For some reason she found it a better place to sleep than a sleeping bag. My eyes moved to my bag, which glittered gold in the light. I unzipped it and brought out my book.

I ran my fingers over the leather binding, the yellowing pages. I traced the pattern of an apple tree on the front. I opened it and read:

_ Ate is known for her cunning and witty ways. She is the daughter of Zues and Eris, the goddess of strife and discord._

"Eris?" I said to myself. "I thought her mother was Hera".

_ There is much controversy over Ate's parentage. Some say her mother was Eris, some Hera. The only source of the answer to that is in this book. Eris was Ate's birth mother, but Zeus knew that Hera would become outraged, so when Ate was born, Zeus gave her to Hera as a gift, to raise the child as her own. Eris was outraged at this, and told Zeus that the girl would grow up to remind him of her, and that she would never belong in Olympus, and also that one day she would hate him and Hera. Eris had been banished from Olympus many years before, and she said that one day Ate would follow the same path as her for the decision Zeus made._

"Wow," I said. I wondered what it was like, growing up in the home of the gods themselves, but not feeling welcome. I wished I could know more.

The moment I made that wish, the book started glowing. I gasped as my vision went white, and suddenly I was in a different place.

I was in an ancient Greek temple of sorts, with white marble pillars and a mountain rising in the distance. I didn't know how, but I knew I was in Mount Olympus, the old one in Athens. But it looked brand new. I looked down to see my reflection. I was wearing a white Grecian robe, and my hair was braided with pearls. Across my forehead ran a band of silver and gold.

My thoughts were interrupted by a little girl's voice. "Daddy!" it said. I looked and saw a little girl with smooth black hair and in impish smile. She looked only about five years old.

"There's my little girl," said a booming voice. I turned and saw a big man with a dark cloud of a beard and teeth brighter than a lightning bolt. The little girl ran into his arms, and he hugged her.

"Daddy, I was walking through the garden, and you'll never guess what I saw," the little girl's eyes were impossible wide, and shone like two big moons.

"What did you see?"

The little girl smiled and whispered, "I saw Aphrodite and Persephone. They were arguing about who was prettier".

"Again?" Zeus said with exasperation, but also a little of amusement.

"Mm-hmm," the little girl nodded. "And Aphrodite threatened to curse roses for all time, but then Persephone said she would curse all the lovers on earth. It was hilarious".

"I do wish Persephone and Aphrodite would stop it," Zeus said thoughtfully. "Teenagers".

"Who?" said a voice. I turned and saw a woman who was dressed in a white gown that shimmered with rainbows. Her hair fell around her in a way that seemed angelic. Her face was pale and regal. She held two babies, one on each hip; a boy and a girl. When the woman saw the black- haired girl, she smiled, but a little coldly. "Ate," she said. "Were you spying in the gardens again?"

"Maybe," the girl stuck out her lower lip in a heart-breaking puppy dog face.

At the name of my mother, I jumped a little.

"It was just a bit of fun," said Zeus, who stood up. "Let it go Hera".

Hera didn't look like she wanted to let it go, but she changed the subject. "Zeus, could you help me with Apollo and Artimes?"

Zeus took Apollo from Hera. The baby squealed in delight, and his golden hair shone in the sunlight.

Ate stood looking at the baby, unsure of what to do. Then, with a dismissing look from her father, left the throne room of the gods.

I followed after her, down the steps and behind a pillar. There was another girl there, with black hair and stormy eyes. She looked at Ate with curiosity, but said nothing.

The scene changed, and I saw Ate in the garden in Olympus. She looked older, about my age. She was talking with the stormy-eyed girl.

"I just can't believe it," Ate was saying. "Why didn't they tell me before?"

"They're our parents," the other girl said. "I guess they were just trying to protect you".

"She's not my real mother Athena," Ate said. "I would expect at least father to be honest with me".

"Just because Hera isn't your born mother, doesn't mean she doesn't care for you," Athena's eyes showed that she was speaking earnestly. I could tell that the two goddesses were close. They spoke to one another with the ease of two best friends.

"No," Ate said with distaste. "I always noticed there was something different about how she treated me and how she treated her other children. How she treated you".

Athena's face turned red. "I'm sure you're imagining it—"

"You know I'm speaking the truth Athena," Ate said. "You've seen it too".

Athena sighed. "You never could be fooled, could you?"

Ate looked up at a statue. It was Hera herself, holding a peacock. She looked just as regal as she was in person. "It's not so much that she's not my real mother I mind. It's who is".

Athena looked at the statue too, then at Ate. "Don't think about it. You've never known her. It doesn't matter".

Ate looked at Athena. "For the wisest of the gods, you sure don't sound like it. Of course it matters Athena. Eris is my mother, my kin. I belong with her. It's in my nature".

"It doesn't have to be. Mischief and strife are two different things".

Ate looked down at the ground. "Maybe your right. But they're still wrong for not telling me".

"Even Gods make mistakes," Athena put a hand on her half-sister's shoulder. "Don't worry. I'm sure they'll make it up to you".

"I don't know," Ate then changed the subject by saying, "Hey, I hear Dionysus got that big role in the newest play at the theatre. Wanna go?"

Athena laughed. "And miss my half brother crash and burn? You bet". The two girls giggled as they walked towards the theatre. I followed them.

"Hey," I said, walking alongside them, "I don't know how I got here. Do you know how to wake me up from this dream?"

The girls ignored me. I followed them into the theatre, and I realized that they could neither hear nor see me.

I slipped past Hermes, guarding the entrance, who looked only in his early twenties. I recognized him only by the winged sandals he wore and the staff with two snakes coiling around it. I sat next to Athena, who was scanning the crowd for someone.

"Where is the little creep?" Ate asked, scanning too.

"I don't know," Athena said, squinting. "Perhaps he's backstage".

Suddenly a boy of about ten appeared onstage. His unforgettable golden hair made me realize it was Apollo. Apollo bowed, the curtains opening, and he took his place on the left side of the stage. He plucked on a harp while other nature spirits stepped onstage and started the play.

They play was a little hard to understand. I thought it was about some hero, or maybe a village or something. But everyone else in the theatre seemed to like it.

"Oh no!" said a nymph. "Who will save this cursed village from the dreaded hydra?"

Just then another boy about my age stepped onto stage, apparently the person who played the role of the hero. I almost busted out laughing because he looked anything but a hero. He was scrawny, with long arms and legs. His brown hair lay in straw-like curls and he had an almost wild look in his eyes. He wore a purple toga that hung on him like a potato sack.

"There he is," Ate said with an amused smile.

"My Lady," Dionysus bowed to the nymph, a pretty woman with red curls and a blue dress, "Where is the terrible beast that torments this land?"

"He slumbers on the high mountain at day," said the nymph, pointing into the distance. "Oh, please rid our peaceful village of it, and we will be very grateful".

"I think I'm gonna be sick," Ate said. "I hate sappy stories like this".

"It does seem a bit animated," Athena admitted.

"I think this play needs something," Ate said.

"What are you suggesting?" Athena asked, raising an inquiring eyebrow.

Ate responded with only a mischievous smile. She turned back to the stage and continued watching.

"I fear what I will encounter," said Dionysus, who apparently was climbing up a hill, as there had been an artificial mountain prop added to the stage. "I wonder if I will ever see me home again". Finally he reached what I guessed was the top of the hill, and a hydra stepped onto stage. I leaned forward in my seat in surprise, but then I realized it wasn't a real hydra. It was translucent, as if made of mist. Dionysus grabbed a wooden sword that was strapped to his side and started what was probably a pathetic attempt at fighting the dragon. He swung the weapon awkwardly, and I was thankful the hydra wasn't real.

"Ok, I think I've seen enough of this," Ate said.

Athena looked at Ate, and something passed between them. Athena didn't really show emotion much, but I saw her eyebrow twitch in what seemed like the slightest hint of realization. "Ate, do not try anything rash".

"Rash?" said Ate with a particular raised eyebrow smile that reminded me, with a shock, of myself "Since when have I done anything rash?" Ate turned her attention to the stage, analyzing the scene. She seemed to be looking for just the right moment.

Dionysus whirled around and slashed with his wooden sword.

Ate gave a small, almost unseen half grin, and in a movement that was professionally clandestine, flicked her wrist.

And at that small, professionally clandestine movement, multiple things happened at once. First, a string on Apollo's lyre broke, sending a vibrating _throng! _sound across the theatre. Then a split second later Dionysus's toga shifted, and he tripped on it, and since he had already been in a movement forward, he fell right through the mistform hydra, fizzling the image and sending the mist around the room, a loud wizzing sound filling the air. Dionysus fell on his butt, tripping over the curtain, ripping it off, revealing the nymphs that had been standing behind it. They, shocked from their sudden exposure, jumped back in surprise, knocking the back wall, which was only a temporary prop, down.

By now the theatre was total pandemonium; gods, satyrs, and nymphs alike fleeing from the place. Dionysus just sat on the stage, a look of pure mortification on his face.

The whole time Ate sat laughing hysterically. Even Athena chuckled. I had to admit it was funny, and I laughed for a while too. But even though I had thought it would be the most hilarious thing to see Dionysus, the curmudgeon Mr. D as I knew him, be totally humiliated, looking at the scrawny little kid that sat before me, I felt a little bad. I looked at my mother, who was laughing, not even bothering to hide her contempt. I bit my lip as I felt a twinge of guilt.

"You feel that?" said a voice. I jumped because it was the first time someone had spoken to me. I turned and saw Athena looking right at me. "Jo".

I looked around me.

"Yes, I'm talking to _you_," Athena said. "Last I checked, there were no goddesses named Jo".

"How can you see me Athena?" I asked.

"Mm, difficult to explain. Let's just say, I was doing a favor for a friend by visiting you".

"So what am I doing here?"

"Well, you asked to know more about your mother. And I just happened to be on my way to you".

"I feel really bad for him," I said, nodding toward Dionysus. "I mean, a prank is ok, but not ruthless public humiliation".

Athena nodded. "Yes, I remember this day well. It was back when Ate was… not as seasoned with her profession, so to speak. We were young. A mere two hundred years, about".

"So what did you do?" I asked.

Athena's lips thinned. "What else?" she turned to Ate and said, as if I wasn't there, "That was pure genius. That'll get him off the stage for at least a week".

Ate turned to Athena and said, "You think so?"

Athena nodded. "But you might want to get out of here while you can, or people will start suspecting you. I'll cover you". And with a grin, Ate fled the scene of the crime.

My jaw dropped. "I thought you said…"

Athena turned to me with a regretful expression. "This is an image of what really happened. I have to keep up with what was said and done that day" she looked down at her hands, then at the stage, where Dionysus was getting up, brushing himself off, and…_sniffling?_ "So, what do you want to do about it?"

"What?"

Athena nodded toward the boy. "Since you aren't a part of this memory, you don't have to follow the script".

"But," I said, stealing a glance at Dionysus "no one can see or hear me".

Athena smiled. "You want to help him, don't you?"

"Yeah, but—"

Athena looked around, then whispered, "I'll tell you something. I'm not the only one who regrets this day".

"I'm not sure I follow".

"She sent me here to show you this moment, as a sort of test. To see if you would do the same thing, or if you would make a change".

Realization sank its way into my head, and I said, "My mom sent you?"

Athena smiled and said, "I'm not allowed to say" but she winked. "So, what are you going to do?"

I looked at the stage, where Dionysus was straightening his toga. I stood up and walked over to him. He looked really upset.

"Hey," I said, not knowing what else to say.

Dionysus didn't answer,

I reached out and tapped him on the shoulder.

Dionysus jumped violently, then looked at me as if I'd just materialized. "Ah!" he said. "Who are you?"

"That's not important right now," I said.

The boy god squinted at me. "You look a lot like that meddlesome Ate—"

"I said it isn't important".

Dionysus looked down and picked up a tattered piece of a curtain. "So what are you here for?"

"I just wanted to know…um, if you needed any help cleaning up".

The god boy raised an eyebrow. "Sure, I guess. Why?"

"What? People don't help you?" I said with a smirk.

"No, actually," he said quietly.

"Oh," I said softly. Without a word a helped pick up the stage, and soon it was clean.

Afterwards, Dionysus said, "Thanks".

"What?"

"I said," he said, a little awkwardly, "Thank…you".

I nodded. "Your welcome".

"What's your name? You really look like—"

"My name's Jo," I said. "Just Jo".

Dionysus smirked. "That's a weird name".

"Oh yeah?" I said, smiling. "I wouldn't be one to talk, _Dionysus_". I laughed and Dionysus joined in.

Suddenly I was ripped away from the vision, my sight went white, and then I was back in my sleeping bag in the underground cavern. I looked around. All was silent. I looked at the clock, and realized that no time had gone by since I had woken up. Suddenly I felt my eyelids drooping, and I lay my head on the pillow. A few moments before I fell into unconsciousness, I saw a flash, and a woman in a shining white Grecian dress and amber band across her forehead appeared by my sleeping bag. Her midnight hair fell gracefully around her and her eyes shone like silver shields. One side of her mouth curved ever so slightly upward, and she whispered, almost as if to herself, "Good. You passed the first test". Then I fell into a deep, blissful sleep.

**Just so you know, I _did_ find contrary information on Ate's mom, but I made up the part about Hera being her adopted mom and Eris being her real mom. That was a sort of twist to fill in a loop hole.**


	26. New Rome

The next morning we packed our things and crawled out of the tunnel. Sneaking away from the dozing monopods, we were soon walking casually through the empty fields. The sun was fresh in the sky and the breeze blew in a salty smell. The colors were impeccably peaceful, and I wondered if we could stay here forever.

"So where are we going?" I asked, shouldering my backpack.

"You'll see," Grover said with a certain small smile. "It's just over this hill…"

We trekked through the fields, and I noticed something.

"We're close to the sea," I said. "The breeze smalls like salt".

"Yep," said Leo.

"No, seriously you guys," I said. "Where are we?"

No one replied, but my attention was turned to my hair, which was crazier than normal. It stuck out almost in a full afro, because of the tragic lack of hair product in the wild. But for some reason, Talia had taken to sitting, and especially sleeping, in it. Now she dozed in my black mane, chiming softly in her sleep.

"Come on Jo," Leo prodded, tapping my shoulder. I was snapped back to the present and saw him ahead of me, at the top of the hill just a few feet away. I followed and when I reached the top I gasped. A huge landscape stretched out before me, dotted with neighborhoods. The ocean gleamed in the distance.

"Welcome to San Francisco," said Grover. I followed him down the side of the hill, and soon we were standing by a busy highway.

"I don't get it," I said. "We were in St. Louis just yesterday".

"It wasn't just yesterday," Leo said. He pointed to a newsstand. I ran over and snatched up a paper.

"No…" I said. "It can't be".

"Oh, it be," said Leo grimly. He and Grover huddled over the newspaper.

"It's June Eighteenth?!" Grover grabbed his hat and pulled on in.

"But how?" I said, still staring at the date. "Before we were captured it was around the twelfth. We were unconscious in the monopods' lair for a week?"

"Apparently," Grover said. "Oh, man, this puts us way off schedule".

"That means we have—"

"Three days till we have to be in Arima," interrupted Leo.

Grover and I looked at him.

"How do you figure?" I asked.

Leo pursed his lips. "I…I didn't want to tell you at first. I thought—"

"Get to the point," I said softly, but firmly.

"The summer solstice," Leo said. "We have to be there then. Arima is a very dark place; full of evil. Our best chance is on the longest day of the year, when the sun is out for as much time as possible".

"And you didn't tell me this before?!" I felt panic rising in my throat.

"I didn't think it was important," Leo defended. "We were making good time".

"And now we have three days to save the world," I said incredulously. "Great. Just great".

"I'm sorry," Leo said. "I was just…"

"How did you find this out anyway?"

"I had a dream," Leo shuddered, as if remembering something horrible he wished to forget. When he saw my expectant look, he reluctantly explained. "It was the night before the quest. I was in a dark room. It was cold, and I could see my breath.

"Then I heard a voice in the darkness. It was a woman's voice, and she said, 'ah, the little hero. You've fought many a foe, and won many battles. But this will be one you are not a part of. You don't belong here, and when the solstice is here, you will watch your friend fall, and there will be nothing you can do about it'. I was scared, and I couldn't run away".

I looked at Leo's now pale face. "So, we have 'till the solstice to find Arima".

"Yep," he said quietly.

"Well," Grover said, "Then it looks like we have to get moving".

I followed Grover, who was followed by Leo. We stopped after a few miles to rest our feet.

"How much farther?" I asked.

"Not far," Grover said. "Just a mile more".

I turned to survey the highway. Cars zoomed past at what was obviously way past the speed limit. Then I saw movement and squinted my eyes. The mist was really thick here apparently, because it took me a moment to realize that there was a monster just a few yards away. There was no doubt that she was one. And she was headed straight for us.

"Hey, you guys," I said anxiously.

"What?" Grover and Leo said in unison.

I pointed a finger.

"Oh," Leo said. "That could be a problem".

"You think?" I said, breaking into a run. The others followed me.

"Where did she come from?" Grover said.

"I don't know. She could have come from anywhere I guess. The mist is so thick here it's really hard to tell!"

Suddenly I tripped over a rock and fell to the ground. Pain shot through my leg, and I yelped. I sat up and looked up into the face of fate. The monster was horrible. It was a woman, who at one time might have been pretty. Now, her golden hair lay in a tattered mess, her eyes and her skin was a sickly pale color. Her finger nails were like claws and when she sneered, her teeth revealed that they were pointed and needle-like and her top canines were long, like a vampire's. Instead of legs, her waist melded to scales and tapered off into a serpent's tail. But the thing that churned my stomach was the fact that she had no eyes. In their place, open sunken eye sockets hung.

"Jo!" I heard someone, Grover or Leo, shout, but I couldn't take my eyes off the horrible face of the creature.

"Who—who are you?" I asked. A stupid question, I know.

The creature flicked her forked tongue and smiled horribly. "Such a stupid little hero. The Mistress will reward me greatly for your head. I am Lamia, a once beautiful mother, now a cursed monster, forced to bear the weight of my lost children. And now I will avenge my good children by killing this bad one here".

"Lamia?" I had never heard of her before. Then again, I knew little of Greek Mythology.

Just then I blinked and a huge mass of fire pushed Lamia out of the way, and she was sent, writhing, to the ground. I stood up as quickly as I could.

"Thanks Leo," I said, staring down at Lamia.

Lamia recovered quickly though. Half her body black with ash, she rose and hissed at us. "You insufferable children. I'll eat you up!"

I turned and ran. I had heard that last sentence in a children's book, but now it seemed a lot more menacing.

"Who's Lamia?" I asked as Leo, Grover and I ran.

Grover looked back and said, "Lamia used to be a caring mother. She was the queen of Libya, and a servant to Zeus, until Hera got jealous".

"Let me guess," I said. "Hera killed her".

Grover shook his head. "No, she did worse. Hera killed all Lamia's children. Then Lamia, overtaken with grief and despair, started killing and devouring other people's children out of jealousy".

My mouth fell open.

"Then when things started getting really bad, Hera turned Lamia into a monster, and forbid her from closing her eyes, so she would have to look upon everyone else's children. Later, Zeus took pity on her and gave her the ability to take out her eyes and tell prophecies".

"That's terrible," I said. "What kind of stories were these? Not exactly what you'd tell your child for bedtime".

Grover shrugged. "If you don't want them misbehaving".

Behind us, Lamia shrieked and I dared a look back. In that instant, I realized how close Lamia was, and she grabbed my ankle. I fell to the ground.

"Be still child," Lamia cooed in a most uncomforting way, "If you don't squirm, your death will be much less painful".

I had to think fast if I was going to live. Grabbing for any little hand-hold of a lead I said, "Wait! You said you have the gift of prophecy, right?"

Lamia stopped. "Yes. Now let me eat you".

"But wait!" I tried my best for a smile. "But I haven't met very many people with that gift before. It must be very rare and special".

Lamia's snarl melted away, replaced by a look of pride. "Yes, it is".

I slowly started to stand, while she was distracted. "Yes, and isn't it true that people with that gift are supposed to make a deal with their victims?"

Lamia's eyebrows furrowed. "I don't remember any—"

"If you read my future, and I'm destined to live, you can kill me now," I said. "If I'm destined to die later on, you let me go".

Lamia still looked confused. "I don't know…"

"And if you don't, I'll have my friend burn you to a crisp," I said quickly.

Lamia looked at me with squinted eyes, but said, "Very well. Let me see your hands".

Reluctantly I gave her my hands. Lamia bowed her head slightly, and started humming softly. After a few minutes, yellow smoke started to curl from her empty eye sockets. The smoke formed pictures, of which I could not distinguish. After a few minutes more, it disappeared and Lamia let go of my hands. She looked almost cheerful.

"Oh, this is delightful," she said. "You can go. If the future is correct, you'll die an even more horrible death than if I killed you where you stand".

"Um…thanks?" I said, backing away.

"Wonderful," she said, gazing vaguely in my direction. "I can't wait to see it when you meet my mistresses". Then Lamia disappeared.

I turned around to face Grover and Leo. They were looking at me with wide eyes and open mouths.

"What?" I asked. "I wasn't in the mood for a fight, so I went for wit".

Suddenly I felt a rustle in my hair, and Talia yawned awake.

_Did I miss anything?_ She said.

"I'll fill you in later," I said, shaking my head.

Talia flew up and around, stretching her wings. Her auburn hair was perfect, even though she just woke up, which I was jealous of. She rubbed her sapphire eyes and looked around.

_Why are we in San Francisco?_ She asked. _Do you realize what two things are here?_

"Um, no, I do not," I said. "Grover, what two things are here?"

"Well, for starters, Atlas," Grover said, pointing to the mass of water in the distance. Through the fog I could faintly see an island, upon which the air seemed to dip down, as if someone were holding up the sky. "The other thing," Grover continued "is where we're going".

"Where is it?" I asked.

"Just through that tunnel," Grover pointed.

I looked and saw a tunnel carved into the land, where a road cut through, and cars were allowed to pass through.

Confused, I followed my friends along the side of the road, and soon we came upon the entrance. Suddenly, the mist bent, and I saw two kids dressed in Roman armor. I couldn't tell much about them, because their armor covered most of their features, but one was tall and lanky and the other had bright blue eyes.

"Who are you?" said the first. "What business do you have with Rome, Greeks?"

"We're here to speak with the praetors," said Grover. "We're from Camp Half-blood".

"I know what camp you're from," said the blue-eyed one. "The one with the tool belt has the bead necklace. Do you think we're stupid?"

Leo looked down at his tool belt. "Um, I have a name, you know".

"Look, can we please just get in?" Grover asked.

The blue eyed one, clearly a girl from her voice, raised her chin and said, "No. we do not allow fauns in to come and beg on our streets".

Grover's face turned red. "I'm not a beggar".

The girl took a step forward, but the lanky guy stopped her with a look. He said to us, "Look, Rome just doesn't let anyone in. we're going to need some proof".

"Like what?"

"I have proof," Leo spoke up.

The guards looked over at him.

"Well, let's see it then," the girl said.

Leo walked up to the guards and said, "My name is Leo Valdez".

The guards dropped their guard and raised their eyebrows.

"So sorry, sir," said the girl. "You may pass".

"Thank you," said Leo with a mischievous smile. The girl led us through a maintenance tunnel, where cables zigzagged and crisscrossed along the walls and floor. The other guard stayed behind at the entrance.

I fell behind Grover and walked alongside Leo.

"Sir?" I asked.

Leo smiled and said, "Yeah, well, let's just say I know people".

Rolling my eyes I said, "Yeah, well, don't let it go to your head".

I looked around as we walked along and saw the hall merge into an old Roman style chamber way. The walls were flanked by torches.

Soon we came upon a light at the end of the tunnel. As we came to it, I saw such a remarkable sight, I could say nothing but, "Woah".

"Welcome to new Rome," said the blue-eyed girl, who had now taken off her helmet to reveal short blonde hair, freckles, and slightly pointed ears. She looked familiar, but I couldn't tell why. "Come, I'll show you to the Via Praetoria".


End file.
